


A Flood Of Blood To The Heart (And The Fear Slipstreams)

by Somekindofpoet



Series: Don't Dead Open Inside [1]
Category: Fear the Walking Dead (TV), The 100 (TV), queer the walking dead
Genre: Blood and Guts, Elyza cusses so much, F/F, Romance, Slow Burn, Violence, Zombies, future smut, sassmaster
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-06
Updated: 2016-05-30
Packaged: 2018-05-31 17:40:39
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 16
Words: 35,499
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6480271
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Somekindofpoet/pseuds/Somekindofpoet
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Elyza Lex, from the beginning of the apocalypse.  At her friend's dying request, Elyza sets out to try to find his girlfriend. When she fails,  Elyza is content to be on her own.  Until she happens to come across the very person she was looking for. Fluffly angsty slow burn for days.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Tagged

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first attempt at fan fic, I'm super rusty, so I'm sorry if its not perfect!  
> Yet another Lexark fic, because I'm trash. Into the trash we go friends.  
> The title is from the song Bloodflood by Alt-J

When Elyza awoke, her entire body seemed to revolt. She had not opened her eyes, but she knew when she did the skull and crossbones flag above her bed would be spinning. At least, she hoped she was in her bed. It would not be the first time she had woken up in a strange girl's house, and had to stealthily escape her clutches.  
With a sigh, she cracked open one eye, then the other. A slight sense of relief washed over her when she saw the familiar alcove of her room. That relief was quickly overtaken by the pounding in her head and the slightly uncomfortable nausea that had crept in. The summer was slinking its way into fall, and Elyza had spent the last few days before class on one hell of a bender. Today though, she had to clean up, sober up and brace herself for the whirlwind of college. 

She begrudgingly dragged herself out of bed, into her bathroom and in one motion, turned on the tub and lay in it. There were hangovers that required showers, and then there were hangovers that required a 30 minute detox in the bath. Elyza was currently experiencing the latter. So she plugged the drain, turned the faucet to scalding hot, and fought to stay awake in the tub. 

Tomorrow she would start her first year of college. Her first year of American school at that. She had been accepted in both the arts and pre-med, so she packed everything she had in Australia and flew out to LA. She had spent the summer getting to know her new turf, scoping out haunts and discovering street artists. She had made a few friends, some still in high school, some in their mid-twenties. 19 was a strange age, stuck between teen and adulthood, with friends on both sides. 

She rubbed her eyes and groaned as she recalled the promise of accompanying her friend Matt to the LA river (like you could call it a river) to help him tag something for his new girlfriend later that day. As if on cue, her phone began to vibrate, then sing her arctic monkeys ringtone. Still in the bath, Elyza side eyed the phone, considering letting it go to voicemail and calling Matt back when she didn’t feel like a zombie. She thought better of it though, and picked up the phone, sliding further into the tub. 

"Matt. It's 8 in the morning, I'm right dusty and I'm positive I told you we could go _tonight_." Her raspy Australian accent was stronger than usual, due to this being the first time she had spoken since last night.

A deep rumble of laughter came from the other end of the line, "Okay Elyza, one, what the hell is dusty? And two, we're going at 10. I'm walking to your house now."  
Elyza groaned and slid her blonde head underwater, covering all the way up to her nose. When she resurfaced Matt was talking again, excitedly going on and on about a new spray paint he'd found, that "just sticks and doesn't fade ever!"  
"Dusty means hungover Matt. I'm hungover. Dead walking. I'm knackered, mate. Make sense?"  
Matt just laughed again and said, "Well I'll be there in 5, so get your ass up and get dressed because I need this tag to be amazing. I'm trying to get this girl to fall in love with me, and you're going to help me do it!"  
"She's already dating you Matt, what more do you need?! Ugh, just know you're buying me brekky, or I _will_ sleep with your girlfriend, instead of helping you into her pants."

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The August sun was just beginning to heat up the asphalt as Elyza and Matt reached the concrete river Los Angeles. The blonde girl was in tight black jeans with large rips down the front of them. Her white v neck was under a worn black leather moto jacket she insisted on wearing even in the 98 degree weather. Matt, on the other hand was dressed in a blue tank top and black shorts, letting his dark skin grow darker in the sun.

"I still don't see why we had to walk Matt, you'd fit fine on my bitch seat" Elyza smirked, taking a long drag of her cigarette.  
"For the last time Elyza, I am NOT riding bitch on your motorcycle! It's so degrading to my man pain okay?"  
Elyza laughed at Matt's sarcastic remark, knowing full well he was just scared of the bike.  
They walked a few more minutes, Matt humming to the music on his phone, Elyza just bearing through his terrible song collection. When they came along an overpass facing the I5 near Burbank (where Matt’s girlfriend lived) they set out looking for the perfect spot for their tag. 

"This is it!" Matt called out excitedly, "Alicia is sure to see it here on her way to school!"  
Elyza finally relented and removed her leather jacket, letting her pale skin show, and praying she wouldn't get burned. The two scaled the overpass, settling with their chalk and spray paint on a ledge connected to the wall they were going to paint. They had already discussed the design they would be doing, so they immediately set to work on the task. 

The sun was high in the sky when they finished, and Matt dropped back to the ground from the overpass. The once empty wall was now graced with a rather large green squid, which according to Matt, was Alicia's favorite animal. Matt stood back to admire their work while Elyza was finishing her last details, both past the point of uncomfortably hot and covered in paint and sweat.  
"Listen mate, your girlfriend better notice this masterpiece." She said as she began to climb down, "You owe me a drink tonight, I'm not out here sweating my perfect ass off for no reason." She slipped her leather jacket back on, despite her complaints about the heat.  
When she got no response, she looked back and saw Matt with his brows furrowed, looking under the overpass. He began to slowly walk forward, his face still scrunched up in what seemed to be a mixture of confusion and disgust. When Elyza dropped to the ground, she finally saw what he was staring at. There was a person in the shadow of the highway, hunched over something dark, moving in an unnatural way. 

"Hey!" Matt yelled, "Hey are you okay?"  
The person jerked their head up towards his voice, and began to stand. That was when they saw what the stranger was crouched over. It was a dog, a very dead, very ripped open dog.  
"Uuuhm Matt, maybe we should go, yeah?" Elyza felt uneasy, between the gutted animal and the way this stranger moved, she knew something was off.  
Matt shook his head, and continued to walk towards the person. When the stranger came out of the shadow, closer to Matt, Elyza could see the blood on his face and hands. Matt froze in his tracks when the person let out a guttural groan and reached out for him.  
"Hey man, are you oka..ah what the fuck!" The stranger sunk his teeth into Matt's chest and gripped at his shirt. Elyza jumped forward at Matt's cry, as he desperately tried to pry the man’s teeth from his skin. She planted a kick square in the man’s chest with her heavy black Dr Martens, and his grip finally released.  
"Run Matt! Fucking run!"

\---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

They were just around the block from Matt's house when he collapsed.  
"Fuck, fuck, what the bloody fuck!" Elyza dropped down on her knees next to him, "we're almost to your house man, you have to get up. You have to get up and I'll get you patched up mate. Come on big guy," she pulled Matt to his feet, and slung his arm over her shoulder. He may have been 100 pounds heavier than her, but she was strong for her size. Elyza practically dragged him the remaining few feet, over the threshold of his front door and into his bedroom. She settled him on his bed, and headed toward the bathroom to find peroxide and hopefully something to give him stitches. When she returned to his room, a cup of water and a bottle of peroxide in tow, Matt was sitting up with his shirt off.  
"That guy bit a chunk out of me! What the hell?!" He looked at her with a bewildered expression, then back down to the bite on his chest. "I was supposed to meet Alicia at the beach right now! She's gonna kill me." He groaned as he tried and failed to stand, collapsing back into the mattress.  
Elyza handed over the glass of water, "Drink this, you're looking feverish. Lay back, I couldn't find a needle and thread to stitch you up, so I'm just going to try to clean it out okay?"  
Matt nodded and leaned back into his pillows, gulping down the water like he'd never have any again. Elyza poured the peroxide over his chest and he gripped the sheets and gritted his teeth. When she tried to use a rag to wipe it, he grabbed her hand.  
"I've got it, go to the beach for me. Tell Alicia to come here."  
"I don't even know what she looks like Matt! And I can't leave you alone like this."  
Matt grabbed his phone, and flipped to a picture of his girlfriend. He turned it to Elyza, “Look, this is her. Go get her for me. Please. She's at the boardwalk in Venice."

Elyza stopped and took in the picture. This girl was beautiful, beyond beautiful. Her green eyes shone through the sarcastic look on her face, her long auburn hair tucked behind her ears, headphones sticking out of them. "Woah Matty, how'd you manage that?"  
"Keep it in your pants Lex, I'm sitting right here" Matt jokingly shot her a dirty look and turned the phone back to himself.  
Elyza smiled, happy that Matt was able to maintain his sense of humor after the trauma of the day. She shook her head, still smiling and stood from the bed.  
"I'll go find her. It's gonna take me a bit to get to Venice you know. I'll have to walk to my bike since SOMEONE is too afraid to let me ride it."  
Matt just waved his hand dismissively at her snarky comment, "Don't get too cozy with her on that bike Elyza. We just started dating, my security is fragile!"  
"Hah! With all this," Elyza gestured to her own body, jutting her hip out, "you should be more worried about _her_ getting cozy with _me_ buddy." She gave him one last smirk, and left his room trying not to laugh at the shocked expression on his face.  
"Just bring her back in one piece woman!"


	2. Traveler's Prayer

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Its a short one, but its moving the story along. I promise Lexark in the next chapter!

Even for 3PM, the 405 was suspiciously crowded. Elyza sat on her matte black Harley Sportster, tapping her fingers on the throttle impatiently. There were more police flying past her in the carpool lane, and she was beginning to worry. She thought about weaving through traffic, but LA drivers could be real assholes. A few weeks ago she thought she’d cut through traffic on the 10 when a man opened his door and hit her bike to stop her. She ran her fingers over the still somewhat fresh scratches on her gas tank, fuming all over again. When three more police cars sped past, trailed by two ambulances and a fire truck, she had had enough. She clicked down into first gear with her right foot, cruised into the carpool lane and then quickly accelerated, clicking up twice into third. As she flew by the standstill traffic, she saw the police cars ripping off the freeway and out of sight. Though her bike was loud, she was able to make out several gunshots coming from the direction of Culver City, to the east of her. Gun shots were not an anomaly in LA, but that many, in this area, were a bit alarming. She twisted the throttle farther on her bike, clicking up into fourth gear. She had to find Alicia before the girl gave up on meeting Matt. As she neared her exit, she braced herself and cut through the cars that were sitting there. It took a few minutes before she realized there were no shouts of anger towards her, no middle fingers flying out of windows, no voices _at all_. 

She slowed down into a lower gear as she hit her off ramp, and looked into the windows of the statuesque cars. They were empty. All of them were empty. Some were turned off, some were left in park, still running, but there wasn’t a person in sight. Around 15 minutes later, she could see the Pacific Ocean over the horizon. As the boardwalk came into view, she saw only a few people, ambling around here and there. She slowed to a stop on the worn wooden planks, and kicked out the stand. Blonde hair poured out of her helmet as she pulled it off, and hooked it onto the handlebars. She walked around the boardwalk, but didn’t see Alicia anywhere, from what she could tell. All she had to go on were those green eyes, a jawbone that could cut diamonds and long perfect auburn hair….okay so maybe she looked at Matt's girlfriend's picture a little longer than she should have. But she was nowhere in sight. Elyza figured she had given up and driven home, or found something better to do. In her musings, she had failed to notice the woman steadily approaching her, limping and groaning. When she turned, the woman was on top of her, much stronger than she appeared.  
“Woah lady what the hell is your problem?” Elyza yelped as the woman grabbed for her hair. She jumped back, and saw that the woman’s eyes were clouded over, and she stunk of something rotting. “What in the actual fuck happened to you!” The woman kept coming towards her, jaws gnashing and bloody spittle flying from her rotting teeth. Elyza didn’t need to see anymore. She high tailed it back to her bike as quickly as her feet would carry her. She was pushing off before her motorcycle had even turned on, then shifting up and peeling out onto the street back towards her house. 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

As she neared her apartment, she tried to figure out a way to tell Matt that, A. she didn’t find Alicia, and B. She’s pretty sure that she had seen two fucking zombies today, oh also he’d been bitten by one.  
“This cannot be happening. Am I fucking high? Did I inhale too much spray-paint today?” She thought aloud as she rolled up to her drive way. She shook her head, trying to convince herself she was dreaming, or hallucinating, or just still to hungover to function.  
She walked to her front door, but paused and turned to look at her neighborhood. Much like the freeway, it was silent. There were faint screams and gunshots in the distance, but her street was deserted. The twisting feeling in her stomach grew, and she quickly unlocked her door and stepped inside. The studio was an open floor, with naked rafters and old concrete floors. She headed straight for the large steel safe that sat on the wall, right next to her bed. The necklace in the shape of a cog wheel on her neck unlocked the safe, and she pulled out her pump action shotgun she had stored there. The best thing that could happen was that she was completely wrong, and would likely be arrested for carrying the weapon around LA. The worst that could happen was that she was right, and her years of prepping for the apocalypse were not in vain. It was a habit she had picked up from her father, whom she had made fun of relentlessly. After he died, it seemed like the best way to carry his memory with her. She had buckets of dry food, and water purifiers, and guns. She had more guns than one person could carry.  
With that thought, she began strapping her legs with her holsters that would carry two .45 pistols and 4 fixed blade knives. After she was strapped up and loaded down with her weapons and ammunition, she grabbed a bag of MREs, took one last look at her apartment, and headed out towards her bike. 

 

Matt’s house was quiet when Elyza arrived, but she began to worry when she saw his front door flung open, and various décor shattered in the foyer. She pulled the shotgun off of her back, and with the barrel pointed towards the floor, made her way into the house. She couldn’t see anyone, but there was a quiet shuffling coming from the direction of Matt’s bedroom. Lifting the barrel she rounded the corner into his doorway and what she found surprised her. Matt was still there, admittedly looking worse for wear, but still alive.  
“Elyza! What the hell are you doing here?”  
“I couldn’t find her Matt, I’m so sorry,” Elyza said as she lowered the shotgun, and kneeled next to his bed.  
“She was here. Her parents took her home, where she'll be safe. Thank you for trying, I’m sorry I sent you out in this. You need to leave Elyza. You can’t be around me.” His voice came out raspy and weak, sweat coating his face, his lips chapped. He closed his eyes and his breath was rattling in his chest. Elyza knew he didn’t have long. His parents weren’t there, and Elyza had no one else, so she told him, “I’ll stay Matt. I’ll stay with you until you sleep.”  
It didn’t take long before he fell asleep. His breaths coming in farther increments, his chest rising became shallower until he breathed one last sigh, and then slipped away. Elyza’s own breath caught in her throat. She didn’t know Matt well, but she considered him a friend.  
With tears in her eyes she pulled out her Bowie knife and whispered to him the final prayer she spoke at her father’s side so many years ago, “In peace, may you leave the shore. In love, may you find the next. Safe passage on your travels until our final journey to the ground. May we meet again."


	3. Green Like American Money

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A loud raspy laugh escaped Elyza at Alicia’s sassy response. She pushed an end of the hose she was holding into the cars gas tank, as she said, “Well I may have underestimated you. I’m going to start calling you the sassmaster from now on. Sassmaster 5000. Commander sass.” Her teasing words sent Alicia into another huff, but she got no verbal response from the girl. Satisfied, she started sucking on the hose, pulling the fuel from the car’s gas tank. When it began to flow, she removed her lips and stuck the hose into the gas tank of the Harley. She didn’t miss the way Alicia watched her lips around the hose, but chose to let it rest. For now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Elyza Lex finally meets the SassMaster Alicia Clark.  
> The songs mentioned are Bad Habit-The Kooks, Cherry Bomb- The Runaways and American Money-BORNS

Green eyes burned into her, bored into her being. She blinked quickly, and shook her head, trying to shake the feeling of familiarity washing over her. Suddenly she was on her back, breathing in the petrichor, as the trees above her rained their leaves over her body. The stars began to swirl into the greens, and the earth began to tip off if its axis, spinning too fast, pinning Elyza heavily to the ground. But suddenly the universe ground to a halt, and there were those emerald eyes again. Inches away from her face, the weight of another body pushing into hers, and _oh_.

Elyza's eyes shot open, as she jerked awake, her heart pounding against her rib age. She sighed, and sat up, rubbing the light sleep from her eyes. She'd been having the same dream since Matt died two weeks ago. A pang of guilt jabbed her, and she winced at the thought of her friend's demise.

Two weeks since everything went to shit. In just fourteen days Elyza had settled in to her niche, _zombie hunter extraordinaire_ she thought, _loneliest badass on the planet more like._

She pulled herself off of the pallet she had slept on, and made her rounds to check every corner of the small shed she had taken shelter in. The world outside was quiet, aside from the occasional shuffle and groan. The few roaming walkers didn't seem to be aware of her presence, so she settled down on the pallet again and pulled her bag to her feet. After conducting a quick inventory (three cans of food, 39 shotgun shells, 60 .45 caliber bullets, and of course, her trusty iPod) she cracked open her last can of creamed corn and tried to quickly eat her breakfast. She had plans to raid the shopping mall close to her that day, to gather more ammo and hopefully find something real to eat. 

The sun was just beginning to peak over the horizon as Elyza packed her things into the saddle bags on her bike. She pulled her full face helmet over her tangled blonde locks, and kicked the motorcycle on. Her iPod plugged in to the bikes radio, and she cranked up her music. The bike was loud anyway, she may as well enjoy the music if the Walkers were going to chase her across the planet. 

_Baby got our head down_  
_Baby got our head down to the ground_  
_Looking for a stranger_  
_Looking for a stranger to love_  
_You gotta dot your i’s and cross your t’s_  
_You gotta let go, come with me_  
_Looking for a stranger_  
_Looking for a stranger to love_  


The mall seemed empty enough, a few stragglers here and there, but it wasn’t anything Elyza couldn’t handle. She rode the motorcycle into the open doors like she was parking a show car, and turned it off. She pulled her shotgun off her back and inspected her surroundings. Since there were no immediate threats, she made her way deeper into the building, passing clothing stores and jewelry stands, until she found what she was looking for. Craning her head back, Elyza spotted a hunting equipment store on the second floor. “Bingo!” She shouted into the empty expanse, and then let out a sigh. “I’m thinking maybe that I like, I talk to myself too much…”shaking her head, then, _ah babe you’re fine_ , she thought to herself with a smirk. 

As she made her way to the second floor, Elyza scoped out the rest of the mall. There were a few fast food restaurants in the food court below her that she hoped had some canned foods or even just a bag of chips. But for now, she was focused on mission number one, more ammo. As she made her way in to the hunting goods store, she became aware of a soft scratching sound coming from the back, closed off area. An “Employees Only” sign hung on the door, and Elyza smiled. She knew it was morbid to get a kick out of killing the creatures that were once humans, but at this point, who cared? She pulled her iHome out, plugged in her iPod and cranked the music up. Let the Walkers come, she could use a good release. As Cherie Currie began to sing the opening line _”Can't stay at home, can't stay in school",_ Elyza kicked open the employees only door.

There was only one rotting zombie in the room, his clothes hung off of his body in shreds and he stunk of a smell Elyza had begun to grow used to. She looked at his nametag quickly, “Well hello there….ah..Jason! Lovely to meet you,” she pulled her Bowie knife from her holster, side stepped the dead man’s lunge, and quickly pushed the knife into his skull. “Pleasure’s all mine mate.” The music coming from her speakers had drawn three more walkers to the entrance of the store, and Elyza turned to quickly dispatch of them. As the last shout of “Cherry Bomb!” rang out, Elyza turned the iHome off, slipping her iPod safely back into her pocket. She was able to pick up a few more boxes of shotgun shells, but it looked like the store had been looted already. 

She left the hunting store, and headed down towards the food stands, hoping they hadn’t been picked over as well. She was approaching a sandwich stand when she noticed movement in the Bath&Body Works store across the food court. Not wanting to leave a possible threat to her back, she crouched down and quickly made her way towards the candle store. It was only when she was in the entrance of the store that she realized whoever was there, was still very alive. There was a soft humming coming from the wall to her right, but whoever was there was hidden behind a large display of ‘Buy 2 get 1 free!’. 

With the shotgun held up at face level, Elyza quickly rounded the corner and shoved the barrel into the face of a very surprised girl. “Holy shit!” she yelped and threw her hands into the air on instinct, dropping the three wick candle she had been smelling. “Look I don’t want any trouble, so if you’ll just let me go….” The girl tried to duck under the barrel of Elyza’s gun, but Elyza turned it sideways and pressed it into her chest, pinning the stranger into the shelf behind her.  
The air was knocked from Elyza’s lungs when she finally made eye contact with the girl. Those green eyes…..sudden realization came over her, “Alicia?!”  
Alicia’s eyes widened when Elyza said her name, she apparently had no idea who she was, or how the hell she knew her name. “Do I know you?” she asked.  
“Yes! Well, no, but I sure know you gorgeous.” Elyza smirked, she couldn’t help herself. “I was looking for you a few weeks ago, right before everything went to shit.” Elyza leaned back a bit, taking some pressure off the gun pressed to Alicia’s chest, but not enough for her to move away. Her look of fear quickly transformed into one of irritation.  
“You were looking for me? Why? Can you _back up_ please.” The last part wasn’t a request, it was a demand. Alicia scrunched her face up in frustration, trying to push Elyza off of her.  
  
“Oh yeah, sure thing buttercup.” Elyza let the girl go, but stayed close to her, just to push her buttons at this point. She wasn’t sure why the irritated look on Alicia’s face amused her so much, but she knew she’d keep pushing her. “Your boyfriend was a friend of mine. He sent me to find you after he….”Elyza stopped, not sure how much she should tell the brunette.  
“After he got bit.” Alicia finished for her. “I’m guessing you’ve figured out by now that he won’t survive.” She said the words so stoically, but there was an undertone of sadness that Elyza could feel.  
Elyza decided to withhold the exact details on how Matt died, she didn’t think Alicia would appreciate knowing she was the one who put his body to rest the second time. “Yeah, I figured as much.” She said instead. “So would you like to explain to me what you’re doing here by yourself? Shouldn’t you be with your family, sweet cheeks?”  
Alicia rolled her eyes at the pet name, but chose to ignore it, “I could ask you the same question….uhm….”  
Elyza’s eyes widened as she realized they hadn’t actually been introduced. She shouldered her gun and shot her hand out to Alicia. “Elyza. Elyza Lex, at your service, doll.” The last bit was accentuated with a wink and her signature smirk.  
  
Alicia only huffed and rolled her eyes yet gain. “I don’t want or need your service, so as great as this has been, I need to get back now.” She moved to walk past Elyza, and headed out into the food court. Elyza followed close behind, unwilling to let her only company in two weeks leave so suddenly (especially company that looked _that_ good). Lucky for Alicia, Elyza was there, because as she rounded a corner a walker stumbled out from an open store entrance and moved to grab her. Before Alicia could even let out a scream there was a bullet in the head of the dead thing, and it collapsed to the ground. She turned to Elyza, her ears ringing from the gunshot and blood spattered on her face.

Elyza was smiling a huge toothy grin, and as she opened her mouth to speak Alicia lifted her hand into her face to stop her. “Don’t you dare,” she growled at the blonde.  
Elyza’s smile only grew, and she arched a cocky eyebrow at Alicia. “You know darlin’, I was only gonna say you’re welcome. But it appears that my services, wanted or not are in fact needed. So princess,” she said as she sauntered over to her motorcycle, “Your chariot awaits.” 

\------------------------------------------------------- 

With Alicia tightly wrapped around her waist, Elyza cruised through the dead cars on the highway, slowly making her way towards Santa Monica, where Alicia’s family was holed up. As they made their way further west, the congestion on the highway became too tight, forcing them to exit onto an access road. When they began to approach an empty looking gas station Elyza slowed the bike down, stopping near a pump. After she pushed out the kick stand, Alicia unwound herself from Elyza and stood from the bike. She hissed as her bare calf grazed the scalding exhaust pipe, effectively leaving a reddening burn on her skin.  
Elyza furrowed her brows, “You know princess, as much as I am enjoying you in those shorts, they probably weren’t the greatest outfit choice for the end of the world.”  
Alicia shot her a dirty glare, unable to resist voicing the snarky remark that came to mind. “Oh yeah, great observation there, perfect one. I’m sorry I didn’t quite have the time to coordinate my apocalypse outfits to match your standard.” She shook her head and continued, “It’s not like it was the _plan_ to be stuck on the back of a motorcycle with you.”  
Elyza smirked, pulling a hose from her saddlebag and making her way over to an abandoned car at the gas pump next to them. “Perfect one huh? I could get used to that nickname babe.”  
Alicia huffed a heavy breath through her nose and rolled her eyes, crossing her arms over her chest. Elyza snorted a laugh, “If you keep rolling your eyes like that, they might just get stuck in the back of your head.”  
“Yeah, well if you keep smirking that stupid smirk, your face might get stuck like that.”  
  
A loud raspy laugh escaped Elyza at Alicia’s sassy response. She pushed an end of the hose she was holding into the cars gas tank, as she said, “Well I may have underestimated you. I’m going to start calling you the sassmaster from now on. Sassmaster 5000. Commander sass.” Her teasing words sent Alicia into another huff, but she got no verbal response from the girl. Satisfied, she started sucking on the hose, pulling the fuel from the car’s gas tank. When it began to flow, she removed her lips and stuck the hose into the gas tank of the Harley. She didn’t miss the way Alicia watched her lips around the hose, but chose to let it rest. For now. 

Soon the gas was spilling out of the small gas tank of the motorcycle, and Elyza pulled the hose from it and the car, emptied the remaining fuel onto the ground, and coiled it up. Once it was safely tucked back in the saddle bag, she straddled the bike, lifting its weight and turned to Alicia. “You coming babe, or you just gonna ogle me for the next ten years?”  
“I was not!....” Alicia didn’t bother to finish her sentence, as the start of the motorcycle drowned out her objections. She climbed on behind Elyza, wrapping herself around her once again, this time careful to avoid the exposed pipes. Elyza smiled to herself, enjoying the girl far more than she probably should. She plugged the iPod in, and kicked the bike into gear. 

_And like a stallion raised in the rain_  
_You rode on the back of my bike_  
_I knew from the song that you sang_  
_That you were my lover for life_  
_Oh, there's no time to sleep_  
_Oh, living in a dream_  
_So take me to the paradise_  
_In your eyes_  
_Green like American money_  
_You taste just right_  
_Sweet like Tennessee honey_  



	4. Spencer's

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In between deep breaths and giggles she said, “Oh princess. You sweet little thing. I’m so sorry. Did you at least find what you were looking for?” When Alicia shook her head no, Elyza’s laughter fit started again. When she could breathe again she rapidly composed her face into a serious one, fighting not to break a smile and said, “I’m always available, if you find the need to..”  
> “Oh my GOD no Elyza stop!” Alicia interrupted her before she could say something that would only embarrass her further. This once again sent Elyza into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Lexark traaaaassshhhh

Elyza was beginning to grow wary as she weaved through tight traffic on the highway. The sun would be going down soon, they were still a ways from Alicia's family and they kept having to detour around blocked streets and walkers. She slowed the bike down and turned her head so Alicia could hear, "Well doll, I don't think we're gonna make it back to your family today. We need to find somewhere to wait out the night." 

Alicia didn't say anything, only sighed and nodded. Elyza knew she was tired too, being a passenger on the motorcycle was almost just as much work as driving it. As they pulled off the highway and headed toward a suburb, Alicia gave up on her attitude and lay her head against Elyza's back. The blonde girl smiled, enjoying Alicia's surrender. 

It took them a while to find a neighborhood quiet enough to safely stop, but they eventually found a small house tucked away in a cul de sac that would do for the night. Elyza pulled her knife from her thigh holster and handed it to Alicia. She noted the hesitation in the girl before she wrapped her fingers around the handle and nodded her head. With Alicia equipped with her weapon, Elyza pulled out another knife in her left hand, a pistol in her right. 

With a deep breath Elyza swung open the door and banged on the doorframe. Alicia gave her a confused look but Elyza just shook her head, "Just wait. Trust me babe."  
A minute later two walkers stumbled from the hall, making their way towards the door. Elyza pushed Alicia back with her and let the walkers follow them into the drive way. When one lunged at her she jumped sideways, sinking the knife into its temple. 

As the other walker reached for her she tried to pull the knife from the skull, but it was lodged too tight. Elyza gave up on the knife to grapple with the growling thing, doing her best to keep it at arms distance. In the struggle she dropped her gun and tripped over the body at her feet. Just as she started to fall the walker above her went limp. The full weight of a dead grown man crushed Elyza, but its teeth had stopped moving and its hands went slack. When she managed to roll the body off of her, she saw the knife in the back of its head. Her eyes went wide and she looked over at Alicia who was shaking visibly.  
"Holy shit princess! Did you fucking throw that knife? “As the words left her mouth she noticed tears coming to Alicia's eyes, she was shaking her head slightly and her lips were parted. Elyza quickly moved towards her and gripped her by the shoulders.  
"Hey, hey you're okay, its okay. I'm here." She tipped the brunettes head up, "look at me. You did what you had to do. You saved my life Alicia." She took Alicia's head in her hands, "That was your first." Alicia nodded.

Elyza wrapped her arm around Alicia's shoulder and led her into the house. She took her to a large couch in the living room and softly pushed her to sit.  
"Sit here okay? Stay right here. I'm just going to check the rest of the house and I'll be right back yeah?" Alicia only nodded again, and leaned back into the couch. 

Elyza quickly cleared the rest of the house, relieved to find no more bodies. She made her way back through the kitchen and in to the living room to find Alicia asleep on the couch. She shook off her leather jacket and draped it over the girl’s shoulders. She decided she would let her sleep until there was food ready for her. 

After inspecting the kitchen cabinets and pantry Elyza began to assemble what she could for dinner. There were two cans of pork'n'beans, some canned asparagus and a huge bag of beef jerky set out on the table for the two of them. She did one more walk through of the pantry when something caught her eye. A rather girlish _squee_ slipped out of her when she saw a bag of chocolate candies and another full of dumdums. She tossed the two bags onto the table along with their makeshift meal and left to wake Alicia.

"Baaaaabe"  
"Hhmmmmmm"  
"Baaaaaaabe"  
"WHAT?"  
"Good morning" Elyza said with a victorious grin. It delighted her that Alicia wasn't fond of being woken up. Just another token for her growing arsenal.  
"It's not morning. Let me sleep."  
"Fine. I guess I'll keep all the chocolate for myself then." Elyza smirked, _that_ caught Alicia's attention.  
“You found candy?”  
  
Elyza nodded, and strutted into the kitchen, waiting for Alicia to follow her. She took a seat at the table and looked back at Alicia, “Well are you coming? It’s rude to start eating before a lady sits at the table.” Yet another eye roll from Alicia, but she pulled herself up from the couch and made her way to plop down in the chair across from Elyza. As the two girls dug in to their meal, Elyza remembered Alicia hadn’t told her what she was doing in a mall on her own, so far away from her family.  
“So, babe, you never did fill in the blanks on why you were smelling candles alone at the mall.”  
“My name is Alicia,” she sarcastically pointed to herself, then to the blonde across from her, “Elyza. Alicia. Not babe. Or buttercup, or princess,” as Elyza opened her mouth to speak Alicia quickly finished with, “or _sassmaster_!”  
Elyza smirked and mumbled, “You forgot sweetcheeks.”  
Alicia threw her hands into the air and huffed. “Why do I even bother with you! And for your information, my family and I got separated…”the rest of her sentence was said under her breath in a mumble that Elyza couldn’t hear.  
“What was that last part doll? Didn’t quite catch that.”  
“We got separated because I hrmphblesnfn”  
“Uhm. One more time please bayyy…Commander Sass.”  
A loud sigh came from Alicia and she covered her face with her hands. “We got separated in the mall because I went to Spencer’s for their _adult gifts_.” Her face was redder than any tomato Elyza had ever seen, and she dropped her forehead onto the table. It took a moment for Elyza to figure out what Spencer’s was, but as soon as she did she let out a loud bark of laughter.  
  
“HAH! No. Alicia, babe. You got separated from your family because you went to a novelty store to find yourself a _dildo_?!” When Alicia said “Actually I was looking for a vibrator” without lifting her head, Elyza’s laughter became uncontrollable. She rolled out of her chair to sit on the floor, then slid down onto her side, rolling on the tile crying in laughter. Alicia lifted her head, and raised a judging eyebrow at the debacle of the blonde Australian badass rolling on the kitchen floor, clutching her stomach. As embarrassed as she was, and as much as she wanted be angry with Elyza, she let out a small laugh. Elyza got onto her knees and reached a hand up on the table, trying to pull herself back into her chair. Though the laughter had slowed down, she wasn’t done yet.  
In between deep breaths and giggles she said, “Oh princess. You sweet little thing. I’m so sorry. Did you at least find what you were looking for?” When Alicia shook her head no, Elyza’s laughter fit started again. When she could breathe again she rapidly composed her face into a serious one, fighting not to break a smile and said, “I’m always available, if you find the need to..”  
“Oh my GOD no Elyza stop!” Alicia interrupted her before she could say something that would only embarrass her further. This once again sent Elyza into a fit of uncontrollable laughter.

  
  
  


It took her an hour to finally settle down.

  
  
  


 

Blankets were thrown on the floor of the living room next to the couch, and Elyza was working on creating a perfect cocoon for herself to sleep in. Alicia was sprawled out on the couch, her arm hanging off the edge, inches from Elyza’s face. They had finished eating and barricaded the house so they could both get some much needed rest. When she finally got herself comfortable, Elyza closed her eyes, ready to doze off.  
“Elyza?”  
“Yeah gorgeous?”  
“Did you see him before he turned?”  
Elyza knew she was asking about Matt. She figured she should probably tell her the truth, she deserved to know he wasn’t roaming the city, eating people. She sighed, “Yeah I did. I was there when it was over. I made sure he didn’t come back.”  
“Was he comfortable at least?”  
“As comfortable as he could be I suppose.”  
“Oh.”  
“Did you ever see the tag he made for you?”  
Alicia frowned, “He made a tag for me?”  
“Yeah, I helped him out with it, but it was all his idea. We spent all fuckin day painting a ridiculously huge green squid on the I5 overpass, facing your neighborhood.”  
A wet laugh came from above Elyza’s head. She could hear the girl fighting tears, “Yeah I saw it. I loved it, actually I freaked and pointed it out to my brother Nick. I didn’t know it was for me. Thank you.”  
“For what? It wasn’t my idea, I can’t take credit.”  
“No, I mean thank you for everything you’ve done today. And for that. And for telling me about Matt. I’d probably still be stuck in the mall wondering what was going on, or dead.” She took in a deep breath, “So thank you, you Australian asshole.”  
Elyza just smiled into her blanket cocoon, and scooted closer to the hand hanging from the couch. She wasn’t close enough to touch her, but she was close enough to know she was there.  
“Sweet dreams princess.”  
“Goodnight Elyza.”

  
  
  


Green eyes hovered above her, but they were only green on the outside ring. Most of the color was covered by an enlarged black pupil. As the eyes came into focus, Elyza was able to make out regally high cheekbones, a perfectly sharp jawline, and full pouty lips. There was a hand on her neck, and the lips descended down towards her mouth, when she felt the weight of a body dropping onto her, and _oh_ she was seeing stars and trees and lightning and…

  


Elyza jumped awake when a heavy weight dropped onto her stomach and chest. She jerked up, ready for a fight when she heard a familiar groan of irritation. She looked down to her chest and saw an ocean of auburn hair flowing over her shirt. Under the hair was a face, and below that a thin wiry body, and then she realized, “Alicia?!” When the girl on top of her didn’t respond, and only gripped her tighter, she looked up at the couch. She was torn between the excitement she felt in her stomach and trying not to laugh when she realized Alicia must have rolled off of the couch and landed on her in her sleep. She lifted her head to look at the window, but it was still pitch black outside. After three more attempts at waking Alicia, Elyza gave up, content to let her sleep there, wrapped around her in now shared blankets.

  
  


The dream didn’t come again that night. Just sweet, deep slumber.


	5. Summer Storm

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Hey gorgeous, it’s time to wake up.” Elyza gently shook Alicia’s arm that was still tightly holding on to her midsection. There was a soft groan, but the girl clung to sleep like a child. Elyza sighed, “Okay buttercup, you’re not gonna like this very much…”she moved to shift away from her again but Alicia just let out a heavy frustrated breath and fisted Elyza’s shirt in her hand. “Jesus woman, were you a fucking koala in your last life? A sloth? Please get up princess, or I’m gonna pee my pants.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So in the beginning of this fic I wanted to emphasize that the relationship between Alicia and Matt was new, unlike in the actual tv show. I just wanted to make sure it didn't seem like Alicia moved on too quickly from her dead boyfriend. I still plan on a slow burn, I just wanted to make sure I cleared any possible confusion up. The song at the end is Cigarette Daydream by Cage The Elephant. Enjoy!

At some point during the night, a rare southern California summer storm rolled in. The soft sounds of rain drew Elyza gently from her sleep. There was rolling thunder in the distance, but not close enough to concern her just yet. The weight of an arm over her chest brought her back to the memory of last night. Elyza was surprised to see Alicia still curled up next to her, one arm slung over her, the brunette’s forehead pressed into her shoulder and her right leg over Elyza’s own. She took a minute to appreciate the sleeping girl, before trying to rouse her. She knew there would be some tension as soon as Alicia realized where she had slept, but there was no way for Elyza to escape her grasp without waking the girl. She drew her arm away from Alicia’s face and moved to sit up, leaning on her elbow. A frown spread across the younger girl’s features at the loss of warmth, and Elyza couldn’t help but chuckle at the pouty expression.

“Hey gorgeous, it’s time to wake up.” Elyza gently shook Alicia’s arm that was still tightly holding on to her midsection. There was a soft groan, but the girl clung to sleep like a child. Elyza sighed, “Okay buttercup, you’re not gonna like this very much…”she moved to shift away from her again but Alicia just let out a heavy frustrated breath and fisted Elyza’s shirt in her hand. “Jesus woman, were you a fucking koala in your last life? A sloth? Please get up princess, or I’m gonna pee my pants.”  
Alycia finally started coming out of her sleep, she scrunched her face up and cracked open her eyes, trying to take in her surroundings. Elyza froze, waiting to see what the girl would do when she noticed their closeness. She braced herself and watched Alicia with her eyebrows raised in a nervous expression. It took nearly a full minute for Alicia to come to, but Elyza knew she was figuring it out when her eyes went wide, she jerked her arm back and finally released the blonde.

“Oh god. Shit!” Alicia was scrambling back, trying to distance herself from Elyza and stand at the same time. This uncoordinated effort resulted in her tripping over the couch and falling right back on top of the person she was trying to escape. Elyza wasn’t sure if she wanted to feel sorry for Alicia in her obvious discomfort or laugh. Elyza Lex chose the latter. Of course she did, she was Elyza Lex. 

“Look babe, you don’t need to ‘accidentally’ fall on me to cuddle. Like I said, always available...” The look she then received from Alicia who had her arms braced on either side of Elyza’s head shut her up quickly. Her green eyes were dark, but her expression was one of indecision. The fact that she didn’t immediately remove herself from Elyza’s space again created a different kind of tension in the air, the crackling of electricity matching the lightning outside. 

The moment was broken by an eye roll, and Alicia retreated to the couch to try to finish waking up. She rubbed her eyes and stretched her long legs out, grumbling in her still half asleep grump. Her voice was raspy with sleep when she said, “This never happened. If you mention it, I will kill you Elyza.”  
Elyza put her hands up, “Woah now Commander, no need for threats. No one will ever know,” she moved her finger in the shape of an x over her heart, “cross my heart.”  
Alicia nodded her head and leaned back into the couch. Elyza got up to walk toward the kitchen, but she couldn’t stop herself when she mumbled, “Not something _I’m_ gonna forget though.”  
Alicia threw her head back into the couch and tried to give the blonde a death stare, but she was already in the other room. Elyza scrounged up breakfast for them while Alicia got up and began to pace in the kitchen. She ran her hands through her long hair, an action Elyza couldn’t help but watch in her peripherals.  
“You going to tell me why you’re pacing princess, or are you just trying to distract me?”  
Alicia stopped and dropped into a chair at the table, “We’re not going anywhere today are we?” The anxiety was clear in her voice.  
“Not with a storm like that, no. We can maybe try to move to another house in the neighborhood, but it won’t go well trying to ride the bike in the rain. Speaking of, we need to move her inside. I don’t want my seat and saddlebags getting ruined.” She brought the plate of rice and spam to Alicia at the table. The girl looked at the plate, and hungrily dug in.

Elyza snorted, “You like Spam huh?”  
“It’s probably the most normal thing I have eaten in a while.” Alicia admitted with a shrug. “The only thing better would be some scrambled eggs in the rice.” Between mouthfuls of food she continued, “I’m not upset you know.”  
Elyza sat in the chair across from her and tilted her head, “Upset about what?”  
“ _Not_ upset. About not being able to move today. I know I need to get back to my family, but I’m not ready to deal with them yet. They’re a wreck.”

Elyza was surprised by the sudden honesty from Alicia, not expecting her to open up after her irritation from earlier. She raised her eyebrows and replied, “It’s the end of the world doll. I think everyone is a bit of a wreck.”  
Alicia nodded at this, but elaborated, “Yeah I guess. It’s quiet without them. Besides your incessant need to push my buttons, I don’t mind being with you. My brother is going through heroin withdrawals, my mom and my step dad are still trying to pretend nothing is happening and my step brother is busy trying too hard to be a rebel.”  
“Ah yes, sounds like an old episode of Full House around there.”  
“What the hell is a Full House?”

Elyza choked on her rice and looked at Alicia with disbelieving eyes. Alicia was smirking at her reaction, making it clear she was teasing Elyza.  
“You almost had me there sassmaster. Who knew you had a sense of humor.”  
The comment along with the nickname was too hard for Alicia to resist, “Yeah, crazy, it’s almost like I’m a complex human being huh?”  
“Who ever said you weren’t? Just because I _love_ looking at you doesn’t mean I don’t acknowledge you have a personality babe.”  
The comment forced Alicia to pause, and she frowned repeating the line in her head. There was the usual Elyza flirtiness, but did she just admit to being fond of her as a person? Alicia shook her head, the girl barely knew her. Though Elyza wasn’t bad to look at herself…

“Whats goin on in there doll?” Elyza’s words shook Alicia from her thoughts, and a blush began to rise on the brunette’s neck and face.  
“Does the water work here? I would die for a shower.” Alicia asked.  
Elyza nodded yes, and pointed to the hallway, “The bathroom’s right down there. Can’t promise hot water, but it runs.”  
Alicia nodded, “You need one too Elyza, you reek.”  
Elyza scoffed, and raised her hand to her chest, pretending to be offended. "Did you realize that before you spooned with me, or while you were doing it?”  
“Wouldn’t you like to know?” Alicia smirked, not letting Elyza get under her skin.  
Elyza laughed as Alicia got up to head toward the bathroom. She shook her head and grumbled “Straight girls…”  
Alicia paused in the doorway of the bathroom with her hands on the doorframe. She raised an eyebrow and smiled at Elyza, “Who ever said I was a straight girl… _doll_?” As soon as the words came out of her mouth she slipped in to the bathroom and shut the door.  
Elyza choked on her rice again, this time coughing and sending half of it flying onto the table. _That_ was a surprise. Instead of sass, a huff and an eyeroll, Alicia just flirted back with her. She shook her head and tried not to think about the girl in the shower. She tried to remind herself that Alicia was her dead friend’s girlfriend. _Ex girlfriend technically.._  
She shook her head harder and said aloud to herself, “That is so wrong Elyza. No. No. No.”  
But she couldn’t help the thought in the very back of her head _Yes, yes, yes._

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

After the two girls were showered, Elyza set about getting her motorcycle in the garage of the small house. She pulled the door open and tried to prop it against a toolbox that was inside. She couldn’t get the door to stay open though, and her patience was running out. The motorcycle was quickly getting soaked through in the rain that was beginning to come down harder. She growled in frustration and leaned her hands on the toolbox.  
“You could ask me to help you know,” Alicia’s voice came from behind her. Elyza looked at her over her shoulder to see Alicia with her arms crossed over her chest, an amused look on her face. Elyza grumbled, turning back to the tool box and pushing it close to the garage door again.  
Alicia sighed, “Stubborn ass.” She walked over to the garage door and lifted it, looking at Elyza who now had her arms crossed, the tank top she was in showing off the tattoos on her biceps. Alicia lifted her eyebrows and gestured toward the motorcycle impatiently. “Go get the bike Elyza. I can’t hold the door forever.”

In a rare moment of role reversal, Elyza was the huffy teenager who rolled her eyes and threw her hands in the air as she made her way outside. She sat on the motorcycle and lifted its weight onto the tires center. Once she was sure it was stable, she got off the bike and walked it in to the garage. Once safely back inside Alicia dropped the door, and Elyza let the bike’s kickstand take its weight again. The blonde stalked over to the workbench in the garage and grabbed a towel. Alicia watched her wipe down the motorcycle and asked, “What’s your problem Elyza?”

Taking a deep breath Elyza continued to wipe down the bike. She couldn’t tell her she was frustrated because she liked her dead friends girlfriend. She couldn’t tell her she felt guilty for even thinking about her that way. So she just said the age old, “I’m just tired I guess.” Though Alicia looked skeptical, she dropped it. Elyza was glad she didn’t push her more, but grew frustrated again, because now she had another reason to like the girl. The two made their way inside and Elyza moved to lay on the couch. Alicia sat on the end near Elyza’s feet and turned to the blonde. 

“If we’re going to be stuck in this house all day, you’re going to have to talk to me.”  
“About what?”  
“Whatever you want, I guess. What are you doing in California? Why do you seem so well adjusted to the end of the world? Why are you alone?”  
“Woah woah okay slow down questionmaster.” Elyza leaned up on the arm of the couch, and slipped off her boots, boldly laying her feet in Alicia’s lap. When Alicia didn’t protest, Elyza answered, “I’m in California because I was supposed to go to school here before the shitshow went down. That also answers why I’m alone. My mom is still in Australia. As for why I’m so well adjusted? I’m not sure I guess. My dad was a prepper before he died. I grew up with him teaching me about self-sustainment, self-defense and all that.”

“I’m sorry about your dad.”  
“Don’t be, it was a long time ago. And besides,” Elyza said pushing Alicia’s shoulder with her foot, “I’m not alone gorgeous.” She waggled her eyebrows at Alicia, who just gave her a stern look.  
“What were you going to school for?”  
“I hadn’t decided yet. I was offered scholarships for pre-med and an art major. That doesn’t matter anymore though.”  
That hit home with Alicia. “Yeah, you’re right.” She looked down at her hands, wringing her fingers, and Elyza could see the sadness in her posture.  
“It is nice to remember who we wanted to be though. Don’t let yourself forget who you were before this.” Elyza pushed her shoulder again, “Just know I have always been a blonde bombshell badass though.” That brought a small laugh out of Alicia, making Elyza smile. Mission accomplished.

“What about your tattoos?”  
“What about them babe?”  
“Tell me what they mean. How many do you have?” Alicia rested her hands on Elyza’s shins, relaxing a bit into the comfort of casual conversation.  
“Not all tattoos have to mean something. But this one,” She said as she lifted her left arm, showing Alicia the scene of trees and a starry night sky on her bicep, “I got after my dad died. He always had an obsession with space. I think it came out of his obsession with the world ending one day.” Alicia leaned over and grabbed Elyza’s arm, looking closer at the half sleeve of ink covering the skin.  
“Hm. What else?”

Elyza’s overly confident, flirty demeanor crept in, unable to resist the closeness of Alicia leaning over her. “You could start taking off clothes, and try to find them all.” She winked and smirked, something she knew would irritate the younger girl. It did. Alicia sighed heavily through her nose and leaned away from Elyza. The blonde was suddenly overcome with a great idea. She jumped off the couch, startling Alicia who tilted her head and looked at her like she was crazy. Before she could ask Elyza what she was doing, she returned with the iHome and her iPod. Elyza grinned and set the iHome down on the living room floor.

As soon as Alicia saw the speaker she gasped and jumped off the couch. “Where did you get that?! Does it work?! Does it charge?!” The questions came in rapid fire as she pulled her phone from her pocket and hurried over to the startled blonde. She bent down to plug her phone in as Elyza grabbed her hand.  
“Woah woah no way princess! My speakers, my music!”  
Alicia scoffed, but smartly changed her approach to getting what she wanted. She looked up at Elyza with big puppy dog eyes and said, “But my phone is almost dead Elyza.” She reached out and touched Elyza’s arm. “Let me charge my phone, and we can find music we both agree on.”  
Elyza’s jaw was practically on the floor. She knew what Alicia was doing, but she was surprised that the girl was doing it. She didn’t mind.  
“Fine princess, charge your phone. But please, please don’t put on something stupid.” Alicia squealed, looking very much like the 18 year old she was. Elyza thought seeing her that excited was worth listening to some teen pop songs for a while. She nearly keeled over when Alicia did not in fact put on a pop song. Elyza’s eyes grew wide as she thought _Who the hell are you Alicia Clark?_

_Did you stand there all alone?_  
_Oh I cannot explain whats going down_  
_I can see you standing next to me_  
_In and out, somewhere else right now_


	6. Stratofortress

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Elyza stood stunned, in the middle of the bathroom. She couldn't see through the curtain, but she could make out shapes and shadows. She could make out enough to make her stomach flip. She wasn't sure how long she stood there but when her brain finally turned back on she panicked. As soon as the panic set in, Alicia poked her head out of the curtain, noticing the warm air flowing out of the open bathroom door. Elyza spooked, scrambling backwards trying to escape the room, but her back hit the door frame and her socks were sliding all over the tile.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for sticking with me! The song Alicia is singing is Nothing's Gonna Hurt You Baby by Cigarettes After Sex

Alicia and Elyza spent the rest of the day on the couch sharing music, arguing over whether Vampire Weekend or Cage The Elephant was better, and occasionally having to leave the living room to take care of the walkers outside.  
"The storm is starting to let up." Elyza said as she came in the door after a cigarette, shaking wet blonde locks, "we will probably make it to your family tomorrow. We're only about 15 miles from Santa Monica."  
Alicia sighed, "They're not there. If today is Thursday, they're in Long Beach. There's a yacht there we were supposed to get on. They're leaving on Saturday." 

Elyza frowned as she sat on the couch, but took Alicia's hand in her own. "We can make it to Long Beach tomorrow. Even with the cars and walkers in the way, it should only take us a day, max to get there. Your family won't leave you doll."  
Alicia looked at Elyza and for the first time, the blonde saw hope in her eyes. She may say she's not ready to be with her family again, but Elyza could see that she missed them. She made a promise in her head to get Alicia to her family, if it was the last thing she did.

"What will you do Elyza? When you get me to Long Beach?"  
"Oh I don't know. Maybe I'll try to find the closest Spencer's and head back to my apartment." Elyza poked Alicia in the ribs, smiling.  
"You won't come with me? Us I mean. There would be room for you on the yacht. My family will owe you for bringing me back."  
"I don't know gorgeous. The apocalypse makes people wary of strangers. Especially ones that roll up with more weapons and ammo than most people carry around."  
"I'll talk to them. You should come with us." She inhaled deeply, her hand still in Elyza's, "I'd like for you to come with me."  
The sentence alone was enough to send Elyza into a panic. The look Alicia was giving her did send her into a panic. Her eyes were wide and vulnerable, and she was chewing on her bottom lip. She gripped Elyza's hand like it was a lifeline and Elyza wasn't sure what it meant but she liked it. Despite the guilt gnawing at her insides she liked it. She liked Alicia. She liked the idea of Alicia wanting her to come with her on her journey to the end of the world. At that moment she made another promise to herself, she would not leave this girl’s side unless she clearly expressed she did not want Elyza around anymore. She didn't tell Alicia that. She couldn't. Instead she said, "Let's just wait, and see what happens."

\-----------------------------

The sleeping arrangements were the same as the night prior. Elyza turned herself into a blanket burrito on the floor next to the couch where Alicia sprawled out. The blonde nuzzled into her pillow, happy to be comfortable and warm for possibly the last time till they got to the yacht. She was just starting to doze off when she heard Alicia tossing and turning above her. Not even a minute would go by without the sound of shifting, rolling and sighing.  
"You okay up there princess?"  
A muffled response came out, but Elyza couldn't hear her. "Take your face out of the pillow doll, and try that again."  
"I can't get comfortable. Every time I start to fall asleep, I see that walker I killed. Or Matt. Or my family sailing away without me."  
"I'm sorry Alicia. Is there anything I can do?"  
There was a long pause before the girl on the couch let out a heavy breath. "Will you sleep up here? With me?"  
Elyza tilted her head up towards the couch, eyes wide and mouth open. She bit down hard on the inside of her cheek, then finally responded, "That'll help you sleep?"  
"I slept pretty good last night. Maybe it's just comforting to feel another living person close to me."

The words cut through Elyza like an icy wind, but she wouldn't deny Alicia comfort. She gathered her burrito of blankets, got to her knees and looked at Alicia.  
"Are you sure?"  
The brunette just nodded, she looked nervous, and afraid, and exhausted. So Elyza stood up, moved Alicia closer to the edge of the couch and slipped in between her and the back of the cushions. She pulled Alicia's back to her chest and wrapped her arm around the girl’s front. To her surprise, Alicia took her hand and intertwined their fingers, scooting as far in to her body as she could. With a deep sigh and a sleepy wiggle, the younger girl began to drift off in the comfort of Elyza. 

As she watched Alicia finally succumb to sleep, she willed her heart to slow. Her stomach was performing some kind of acrobatic feat, flipping and turning, dancing to the heavy drum beat of her pounding heart. Her mind was racing a million miles an hour, but all she wanted to do was sleep. Alicia was probably just seeking out warmth of a friend. Girls do that. Hell, _people_ do that.  
"You think too loud Lex."  
The words made her jump, she thought Alicia was asleep. She tried to make her voice steady when she said, "I don't know what you're talking about babe. I'm trying to sleep."  
"Then close your eyes, and sleep. Worry in the morning. Goodnight Elyza."  
"Sweet dreams princess."  
Elyza decided to abandon her restraint and buried her face into Alicia's hair. She wrapped her arm more tightly around the girl and reveled in the contact. She breathed deeply, taking in the light smell of coconut and apocalypse, and finally drifted off into sleep.

\-------------

The sun hasn't yet risen when Elyza woke up, but she knew it was early morning. She had slept soundly on the couch, no dreams shaking her awake or walkers banging on the house. The absence of heat is what woke her, and she realized Alicia was no longer on the couch. She leaned over the edge, her eyes peeking over, but Alicia wasn't on the floor either. Without sitting up she looked in the direction of the kitchen, no one there either. She was suddenly torn between the heartache that she felt when she thought maybe Alicia had left her, and the terror that raced through her veins at the thought that Alicia could be in trouble. When she leapt off the couch, she slipped around the hard wood floor in her socks and skidded into the kitchen. 

There was a soft humming coming from the direction of the bathroom, and before she could think about it, Elyza was pushing the door open. As she registered what exactly was going on, she noticed the iHome on the bathroom counter, soft music playing through the speakers. She noticed the water in the shower running, slight fog coming over the top of the curtain. The smell of coconut and summer lightly wafting out with the steam, and then Alicia's voice. 

_Nothing's gonna hurt you baby_  
_As long as you're with me you'll be just fine_  
_Nothing's gonna hurt you baby_  
_Nothing's gonna take you from my side_

Elyza stood stunned, in the middle of the bathroom. She couldn't see through the curtain, but she could make out shapes and shadows. She could make out enough to make her stomach flip. She wasn't sure how long she stood there but when her brain finally turned back on she panicked. As soon as the panic set in, Alicia poked her head out of the curtain, noticing the warm air flowing out of the open bathroom door. Elyza freaked out more scrambling backwards trying to escape the room, but her back hit the doorframe and her socks were sliding all over the tile. 

An amused giggle fell from Alicia's lips at having caught Elyza dumbfounded. The blonde’s unruly bedhead and gigantic blue eyes made the scene even more endearing. Finally Elyza's body began to cooperate with her brain, she reached her hand behind her to find the open door and tried to quickly back out.  
Alicia laughed again. "Hey wait!"  
Elyza dropped her eyes to the floor, this was not her smoothest moment. "I'm so sorry! I'm so sorry! I'm still half asleep and I didn't..."  
Alicia gently interrupted her, "Can you get me a towel?" When Elyza looked up at her she was smirking, one eyebrow cocked and her head tilted. Alicia Clark was giving her the Elyza Lex look. She frowned and shook her head, but the action caused Alicia to frown as well.  
"No you can't get me a towel?"  
"No, no I mean yes, I can I was just...." The older girl put her hands up, took a deep breath and slowly backed out of the door. As soon as she was clear of the doorframe she hurried to a cabinet to grab a towel. She attempted to compose herself walking back to the bathroom. She would say some flirty comment, and they could act like this situation never happened.

It didn't go down that way. When she turned the corner to the bathroom Alicia was back to humming the song coming from her phone. Elyza went to set the towel on the toilet lid, and hoped to slink out before Alicia noticed her return. Just as she was walking out the door she heard Alicia sigh, and mumble under her breath to herself, "That went well Leesh. So smooth. _Can you get me a towel_? What the hell..."  
She shut the door softly, not wanting to intrude on the girl’s thoughts any further.

Elyza laughed softly in the hall, heading back toward the kitchen to make them food before they set out on the road. _It was pretty smooth, even if she is a major dork._ she thought to herself.

\-----------------------

After a quick breakfast the two packed their things into the saddle bags of the motorcycle. When Elyza went into the front of the house to take out the few walkers that had congregated in the drive way, Alicia straddled the bike. She looked back toward the door to make sure Elyza wasn't back, and put her arms out to rest on the handle bars. She twisted the throttle and leaned into the bike, closing her eyes, imagining the wind in her hair.  
"Uum. Leesh, buttercup, you have to turn it on to make it go." She raised an amused eyebrow at the girl leaned in to her bike.

Alicia's eyes shot open, her face flushed and she leapt from the bike, looking very much like a child caught red handed. "I just wanted to feel it. It's heavier than I thought."  
Elyza laughed and shook her head, "I can teach you to ride it one of these days, when we have more time. For now, let's just keep you on the back huh?"  
Alicia lowered her embarrassed eyes to the ground and nodded, half a smile on her face at Elyza's offer. She went to the garage door as Elyza started the bike, opening it just enough for the girl and the motorcycle to get under, before she slipped out herself. 

Elyza had found her a pair of tight dark denim jeans to wear, so she confidently jumped on the back of the waiting bike, not worrying about the pipes anymore. The blonde revved the engine, feeling the power below her. It had only been a day, but she had missed her baby. She turned to her side and glanced back at Alicia, with a huge smile on her face. She revved the engine again as she let the bike coast down the drive way, and then clicked the bike down into first, then quickly up to second and then third. 

They were off to the races, the storm passed by in the night, the sun now rising to beat down on the two of them. Alicia wrapped her arms tightly around Elyza's middle, and rested her head on the blondes shoulder. 

They had been riding for nearly an hour, weaving in between cars and overturned semis, but they were getting close to Long Beach. After a while, Elyza began to notice a faint humming in the distance. The sound was rapidly approaching them, and the blonde frowned. The sound…was suspiciously like that of an airplane. Or more like a group of airplanes. Elyza slowed the bike down, and came to a halt on the open stretch of highway. Alicia leaned to the side, confused, trying to see Elyza’s face.  
“Do you hear that princess, or is the road starting to fry my brain?”

Alicia paused before answering, tipping her head and listening to the air. Elyza pushed down the kickstand and got off the bike, turning to face the direction of the sound. Alicia finally spoke up from behind her, “It sounds like…an airplane?”  
Elyza nodded, “It sounds like a few dozen airplanes.” She frowned and shaded her eyes over her Ray Bans, head tilted to the sky. She could see the dots on the horizon, coming from the East. “Oh shit. Oh shit, fuck. No no no.” Elyza hurried back over to the motorcycle, “Alicia get on the bike now! Come on we need to go now!”  
Alicia startled at Elyza’s stern but panicked tone. “What is it Elyza?”  
“Alicia. Get on the bike right now. Please. I’ll explain as we go.”  
The brunette relented and climbed back on the bike, wrapping her arms around Elyza, but still watching the sky. Elyza peeled the bike out, ripping down the highway toward the beach. 

“What’s going on?!” Alicia yelled over the wind.  
Elyza shook her head and shouted back, “We need to get to that yacht as fast as we possibly can. We need to get off land.”  
“Elyza what the fuck is happening?” She squeezed Elyza’s ribs in frustration and the older girl grit her teeth.  
“Those are not normal planes babe. That’s military.” She yelled the words without taking her eyes off the road, making it harder for Alicia to hear her. The younger girl frowned trying to piece together the information when the realization suddenly hit her like a freight train to the chest.  
“They’re going to bomb out the city!”

Elyza didn’t say anything, just pulled the throttle further, willing the 1200cc engine to push harder. They were only a few miles away from the docks. They _had_ to get off land. The buzzing was quickly growing into a roar, a roar from the maw of a beast ready and willing to devour them all, living and walking dead.


	7. Meet The Family

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dump the bike and run for dear life, or ride that son of a bitch straight on to the boat. The first option was plagued with what ifs. What if Elyza's passenger was injured in the fall? What if the girl couldn't run fast enough? What if Alicia didn't make it? _What if Alicia couldn't make it?_ The thought alone was enough ammunition to make her decision. She only hoped the passengers of the boat she could now see called "Abigail" understood what she was going to do, and stayed the hell out of the way.

The ground beneath them shook like the earth herself was trying to rid her body of the fleas that infected her. The loud growl of the motorcycle was drowned out by the screams of the bombers sprinting behind them, and the collective groan of walkers being pushed to the water line. The yacht they were racing toward was moments away from being engulfed in walkers, and the situation forced Elyza to make a choice. 

Dump the bike and run for dear life, or ride that son of a bitch straight on to the boat. The first option was plagued with what ifs. What if Elyza's passenger was injured in the fall? What if the girl couldn't run fast enough? What if Alicia didn't make it? _What if Alicia couldn't make it?_ The thought alone was enough ammunition to make her decision. She only hoped the passengers of the boat she could now see called "Abigail" understood what she was going to do, and stayed the hell out of the way. 

Elyza gripped the handlebars of the motorcycle, doing her best to maintain control as they raced across the uneven planks of the docks. She was hyper aware of Alicia gripping her ribs with her arms, squeezing her waist with her thighs. As long as she could feel the girl, she wouldn't stop. She wouldn't give up. There were dead bodies pressing around them, limbs being shorn off by the motorcycle, the opening to the yacht closing rapidly. At the very last second Elyza slammed the rear brakes, turned the bike on its side, and as the yacht started to move away from the dock, the two girls and the Harley slid onto the rear deck. 

Elyza knew this could end badly, she only hoped the 600 pound bike didn't crush Alicia with her. As they slid across the deck and toward the rear wall of the boat, Elyza managed to twist herself around, plant her feet on Alicia's chest and push her to the side as hard as she could. She heard Alicia's breath forced out when she kicked her, seconds before she slammed into the wall, and then everything went dark. 

\--------

There was muffled screaming in the distance, but everything was black. Elyza groaned, raising her hand to her head. _what the hell kind of hangover is this?_ She lay still for a moment, then the shouts and rumbling started to become clear. The fog in her mind was wearing off and she shot her eyes open. As she became aware of her surroundings she struggled up, trying not to black out again from the blood rushing to her head. Her motorcycle was resting next to her, tires still spinning, exhaust pouring out of the pipes. Her heart began to race when the loudest voice in her head screamed _ALICIA_.

She turned to her left and saw walkers on the deck of the boat, slowly making their way toward her. Alicia was nowhere to be seen. She took a deep breath and the ringing in her ears started to fade.

"ELYZA! ELYZA LOOK OUT!" The voice came from above her, on the upper deck of the yacht. She leaned back and could see Alicia trying to leap over the railing to her, but an older blonde woman was holding her back. She smirked at the girl, stuck a finger to her right eyebrow then pointed it away from her in a one fingered salute. She reached back for her shotgun, luckily still attached to her back. BOOM. One down half a horde more to go. 

"Elyza get up here now! You can't take them alone get _up_ here!"  
The blonde ignored the younger girl’s protests, she couldn't let the walkers on the deck with Alicia. There was the telltale sound of her shotgun pumping another round into the chamber and she pointed it toward the group. A well placed shot took two down, then, *chk chk* BOOM, another few fell. There were four left when the Aussie abandoned the shotgun for her pistols. She pulled the two from her hips and alternating guns took the last four down with four precise shots. She checked her surroundings, making sure she had dispatched of all the zombies on the boat. Most had fallen off into the ocean after she took them out, but here was one left bleeding on the deck. She took the sole of her boot and in one swift push, the body slipped into the water. 

She twirled the guns around her fingers like a cowboy and sunk them into their holsters, (more for her own entertainment than anything else). Then she pulled a cigarette from the front pocket of her leather jacket, lit it and turned to face what she assumed was the Clark family, smug grin plastered on her face. "Hello mates, I'm Elyza Lex, and you can thank me later."

Before she could make her way up the stairs to the upper deck Alicia was bounding down them. Elyza smiled wider, cigarette drooping from her mouth, her arms held wide anticipating her embrace. 

She was not anticipating the hard slap across her face, causing the freshly lit cigarette to go flying from her mouth. Alicia had fire in her eyes, the green emeralds turning into a fueled inferno. Elyza's own blue eyes grew large and her mouth dropped open.  
"What the _HELL_ Elyza?! Have you lost your fucking _MIND_? You could have died! You could have died right in front of me!"  
Elyza put her hands up in surrender "But babe, I woulda died _FOR_ you."  
The blonde could feel the fury rolling off Alicia in waves. The girl was shaking, almost to the point of vibrating. When she reached out with both hands to grab Elyza's coat, she braced herself for another blow to the face. 

Again Alicia surprised her for the second time in mere minutes when she yanked Elyza into her body, and pressed a hard, aggressive kiss on the blonde’s lips. The shock took a second to wear off, but once it did, Elyza kissed her back with fever. She wrapped her arms around Alicia's waist and ran her tongue across the girl’s lips, letting her tongue ring lightly graze them. A quiet moan came from Alicia before she was again doing the last thing Elyza expected. She shoved the blonde backwards, and slapped her again, this time not as hard, but she made her point. 

Elyza put one hand to her reddening cheek, and the other's fingers to her lips. The biggest smile she had ever smiled crept across her face, with Alicia still fuming in front of her, but beginning to cool.  
"Huh, never knew I'd develop a slapping kink. Keep it up babe, I'm on my toes." 

Though the look that crossed Alicia's face was one of anger, Elyza could see the blush creeping in. Over the girls shoulder she could see three people obviously in shock at the two's display. A boy that appeared to be younger than Alicia was standing wide eyed, jaw hanging open. Another man, about Elyza's age appeared to be fighting laughter, and the older blonde woman looked torn between fury and astonishment. She assumed the woman was Alicia's mother, as she could see the girl’s features in her angry expression. 

"Alicia. Would you care to explain exactly who," the woman said gesturing to Elyza, "this is? And what the hell just happened?" Her voice went up a notch when she finished with, "And where the HELL you have been?!"

Elyza watched Alicia’s face go through a wide range of emotions, (fear, irritation, and the new special, ‘Elyza keep your damn mouth shut’) before turning stoic as she turned to face her mother. “Mom, Nick, Chris, this is Elyza. Elyza, this is my mom, Madison, my brother Nick, and step brother Chris.” She gestured toward each one as she said their name. As she was introducing them another three men came around the yacht, whom she introduced to Elyza as Travis (the step dad), Strand (owner of the yacht), and Daniel Salazar (stranger?). Madison stepped forward and grabbed Alicia’s arm dragging her away from Elyza. The blonde shrugged, this was the reaction she expected, so she lit another cigarette and leaned against the railing. She’d keep her mouth shut until she felt the need to explain, but for now, she was content to let Alicia deal with the family drama. 

She overheard small snippets of the conversation from the group, “How do you know we can trust her?” “Where did she come from?” “Is she single?” The last bit of conversation drew her eye, and she saw Alicia punch Chris in the arm. She smirked at the girl’s reaction, keeping cool on the outside.  
A few more minutes of murmuring and the group turned toward her. She flicked the butt of her cigarette into the ocean and stood tall. Alicia appeared to be irritated, but not irate, so she took that as a good sign. Madison and Travis came forward, apparently wanting a conversation with her. Travis smiled and stuck out his hand, which Elyza took in a friendly shake. Madison also shook Elyza’s hand, but her expression was not as friendly.  
_Probably has something to do with witnessing her daughter make out with me_ , Elyza thought trying to fight another smug smile. Travis spoke first, “It’s nice to meet you Elyza. I can’t thank you enough for taking care of Alicia. And for the mess you cleaned up back there.”  
“All in a day’s work, mate.” Elyza shrugged, and stuck her hands into her coat pockets. She felt comfortable with Travis, but Madison made her feel too much like a sixteen year old meeting her girlfriend’s parent for the first time.

Madison spoke up, “Yes Elyza, thank you for bringing Alicia back to us safely. You can stay on the yacht if you’d like. We won’t be docking any time soon, so I hope you don’t get seasick.”  
_Ah so that’s where the sassmaster learned her ways._ Elyza nodded, “I should be alright. Been on plenty of boats in my time at home.”  
The man named Strand approached the three, “Well then young lady,” he said opening his arms to gesture at the yacht, “Welcome to the Abigail. I trust you’ll pull your weight, after witnessing the work you’ve done already.” He said referring to the massacred walkers now floating around the boat. Alicia made her way between the adults and to Elyza’s side.  
“Are you done interrogating her yet?” Her usual snark slipping through, stronger here with people she was familiar with.  
Travis nodded, “Yes, we’re done. Welcome home.” He gave Alicia an awkward side hug that the girl was very apparently not welcoming. Then her mother reached around her and held her tight, murmuring into her ear. The moment felt too intimate for Elyza to be witnessing so she made her way over to her motorcycle, still laying on its side. She knelt over it, checking the parts and pieces for damage.

“Oh my poor baby. Are you okay? I’m so sorry,” She said as she patted the bike, “You did well.” She stood next to the handle, put one foot on the peg and used her whole weight to heave it up. Chris sauntered over, watching her pull the Harley up.  
“Do you need help?”  
Elyza snorted, “Nah mate, I’ve got it alright. She’s been lain down before.” She swung her leg over the seat, watching Chris from her peripherals. Under her breath she muttered, “Come on baby, please don’t be dead. I need you.” She gripped down on the clutch, closed her eyes and pressed the ignition. The bike choked once, then twice, then sputtered to life. “She lives!!” Elyza shouted in her excitement, momentarily forgetting the people around her. She shut the bike off, kicked out the stand and looked at the seven people staring at her. Six of them looked at her like she was crazy, Alicia only laughed, now growing used to the “Elyza Lex” shenanigans. She smiled at the girl, ignoring everyone else. The memory of their kiss washed through Elyza’s mind as they stared at each other.

Nick chuckled and elbowed Chris in the ribs, “If she was single, Alicia’s about to change that. Look at those heart eyes!” Chris crossed his arms over his chest, and Alicia moved to punch her brother who quickly jumped out of the line of fire.  
Alicia glared at Nick then said, “Show me where we can get cleaned up.” She was referring to the cuts and scrapes they had from sliding on the deck, and the blood spatter that Elyza was covered in. “And then show me a bed. I’m exhausted.”  
Nick led Alicia into the cabin of the yacht, but the girl had to turn to face Elyza. “Are you coming, or are you going to sleep on the deck?”  
Elyza looked around at the people on the deck, shrugged, and followed the Clark siblings inside.

 

Once they had cleaned up their road rashed skin, and Elyza washed the blood off of her face and out of her hair, the two girls shut themselves in a small room with two twin beds. Elyza flopped onto one of the beds, groaning at the comfort of a pillow top mattress and very high thread count sheets under her. She looked over at Alicia, who was standing with her back pressed against the door, looking like she was waiting to be absorbed into the mahogany.  
“You okay doll?”  
Alicia bit her bottom lip, shook her head, and pressed her hands flat into the door behind her. Elyza lifted her eyebrow, not sure what the brunettes malfunction was, but she had an idea. “So…you kissed me.”  
"You saved my life."  
"Yeah, again! But, you kissed me."  
Alicia took in a sharp breath, “You have a tongue piercing.”

Elyza barked out a laugh but was quickly stifled by the burning look Alicia had set upon her. She cocked her eyebrow and got up off the small bed. As she made her way over to Alicia, she watched the girl stiffen, and squeeze her thighs together. The sight alone made Elyza weak in the knees, but she fought to maintain her cocky swagger. She pressed her right hand against the door next to Alicia’s head and smiled as she leaned in close, her left hand on her own hip. She stuck the barbell in her tongue between her front teeth and dragged it across them, watching Alicia shudder at the sight. “I have more piercings than this one, gorgeous.”


	8. Apocalyptic Plans

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This chapter is kind of long, I got carried away.

Blue eyes locked on to green, as both sets darkened. If pupils truly dilated at the sight of something pleasurable, Elyza was sure her eyes were black. Alicia ran her hand up Elyza's hip, over her stomach, brushed over her chest and planted firmly on her sternum. Elyza's breathing grew heavy as the girl leaned in to her, their lips only a hair away, and then she felt a hard pressure on her chest. She looked down at Alicia's hand, then back up to her. The pressure wasn't a shove, but it was strong enough to tell her to back off. Alicia squinted at her in half assed irritation, then ducked under her arm and walked to one small bed. "I'm still mad at you." She huffed as she sat on the mattress and slipped off her shoes. 

Elyza finally removed herself from facing the wall and walked to her small bed. She was disappointed, but respectful of Alicia's very obvious no. They both had a long day, and maybe it was better to sleep it off, and daydream of another kiss tomorrow. She slipped off her boots and flopped back on the mattress, turning toward Alicia's bed. The brunette went to the small dresser in the room, and opened a drawer pulling out two large shirts and two pairs of boxer shorts. Nick had grabbed Alicia's bag of clothes after they were separated, and Madison had organized them here in hopes that her daughter would return to her. Her hopes were obviously not in vain, and Alicia was happy to have a few changes of clothes. 

Elyza was hit in the face with a ball of clothing, apparently meant for her to wear. Before she could get up to change though, Alicia was stripping down. At the foot of Elyza's bed. The blondes mouth hung open as she watched Alicia smirk (she really must be wearing off on the girl) and slip off her jeans. She turned around and bent over to pull the boxers on over her underwear, and Elyza couldn't avoid looking at the long legs, up to the apex of her thighs, locking on to blue panties. A whimper escaped her throat and she gripped the sheets, trying to anchor herself to the earth she was floating away from. Alicia finished changing, threw Elyza a sultry smile and hopped onto her bed. 

Two could play this game. Alicia may have the perfect ass, but Elyza was well aware of her other attributes. She crossed her arms at the front of her shirt and pulled it off over her head. The bra she had was still new (freshly pilfered from the mall) and she knew her tits looked great. She caught the wide eyed open mouthed look Alicia had on her face from the side of her eye. Before pulling the tshirt on, she slowly pulled her tight black jeans to her ankles, and stepped out of them. She knew it was apparent that the show was deliberate, but it was working, so she didn't care. She faced Alicia as she bent over to pull the shorts on, letting her cleavage spill out of the confines of her bra. When she stood up straight, she quickly pulled the tshirt over her head, reached under it and unhooked the bra, letting it fall from her shoulders. At this point Alicia wasn't even trying to avert her eyes. She was smoldering in her twin bed, making Elyza heat up from the inside out. She gave Alicia a mockingly innocent smile and slid into her own bed, pulling the sheets over her.  
"Sweet dreams princess."  
There was a long moment of heated silence as Alicia continued to stare at her, then, a heavy sigh and, "Goodnight Elyza."

\------------  
Sleep did not come easy for Elyza that night. Terrors of the past few weeks raced before her dreaming eyes, hands of the dead grasping for her, surrounding her. And then there was only one zombie in her space. A bite was bleeding from his chest, a gaping hole in his head from the knife that was suddenly in Elyza's hand. Tears began to pour out and she collapsed, unable to fight Matt again. Unable to kill her friend twice. But then he wasn't dead, he was only looking down on her with sad eyes. He opened his mouth, _Go get her for me. Keep her safe. Bring her home._ He reached his hand out to her, and as she was about to grasp it he was gone and she was falling, falling down into the hands of lost souls. Strong hands gripped her suddenly and held her up, she looked into the crystal blue eyes of her father. He didn't speak in words, only told her in his eyes she was not alone. Sobs racked her body as he dissipated, her own arms wrapping around her body. Then she heard the sweetest voice, an angel she thought. _Elyza, wake up. Wake up Elyza._

Softly coaxed from her nightmare, Elyza slowly came to. It was still dark in the room, and she was soaked in sweat and tears. She looked to the side of her bed and there was Alicia, sitting on her knees, holding Elyza's hand. "Hey," she whispered, "you were having a nightmare. Are you awake now? Are you okay?" 

Elyza could only blink, the weight of the dream still resting heavily on her body, her breathing ragged. Alicia's worried expression changed into one of soft empathy and she let go of Elyza's hand. The loss of touch was only momentarily lamented, because Alicia then proceeded to climb over Elyza and into her bed against the wall. The brunette rolled Elyza over to face her, then gathered her up and pressed her head into her chest. Elyza felt small arms wrap around her, and a leg wiggle in between her own knees. The blankets were pulled up to her chin, and she was engulfed in the feel and smell of Alicia. Silent tears once again ran down her face, but the girl just held her, rubbed her back and ran fingers through her hair. Neither spoke, but the gesture was loud enough. Elyza wasn't sure how long she lay there, until she was lured back into sleep by a blanket of auburn hair and the steady heartbeat against her cheek.

\----------------------

There was a soft ray of sunlight spilling across Elyza's face when she opened her eyes. The small porthole next to the bed revealed blue skies, not a cloud in sight. Alicia was still wrapped around her, breaths puffing into blonde hair. Elyza smiled into the girls chest, and snuggled in closer. She figured she may as well get comfortable, she knew Alicia wouldn't release her while she was sleeping, and the girl was almost impossible to rouse before she'd had at least 9 hours of sleep. The fact made Elyza smile again, as it was a gentle reminder that in spite of everything, they were still only teenagers who craved sleep like infants.

The blonde absently began tracing unseen symbols down Alicia's spine, comfortable and content to lie here forever. But she had forgotten that the yacht also housed at least seven other people, many of whom were incredibly aware of the fact that girls shared a room. Just as Alicia began to stir from sleep, humming in pleasure at the feeling of Elyza's fingers running along her back, there was a knock at the door and the sound of it opening. Alicia huffed, eyes still closed tight. 

"The point of knocking, is to wait until I say to come in." Her voice was scratchy with sleep, and it made Elyza's stomach flip.

A laugh came from the doorway, and a voice Elyza guessed was Nick came from behind her, "You should get up. Mom is pacing in the kitchen so I figured I'd come warn you." He chuckled again and as he was leaving he added, "Don't be surprised if you get the sex talk from Travis today." A pillow was launched across the room and thudded into the door as it clicked shut. 

Alicia put a hand on her forehead and let out a long groan. Elyza just chuckled at the girl, and tried to press in closer to her. She knew she'd be too close for Alicia to hit her when she spoke into her neck, "You wanna give Travis a reason to give you that talk babe?"  
Alicia's breath hitched but she growled deep in her chest and said, "Don't push it Lex. Now get up before my mom comes in to rip your head off."

Elyza grumbled, her fun taken from her just as it had begun. She tried to burrow further into Alicia's hair but the girl just laughed and pushed at her until she finally sat up. The brunette began to laugh harder when Elyza stood up. Her blonde hair was standing up in tufts around her head, weaving in and out of her four ear piercings, some stuck to her eyebrow. Her makeup had run down her face in the night, leaving four streaks of black down each cheek. ** She mock glared at the younger girl and crouched into a ready stance at the foot of the bed, "I'll give you something to laugh about princess!" She pounced on top of Alicia and began relentlessly tickling her ribs, falling on her hips to straddle her for better position. She gripped the struggling girls wrists in her right hand and held them above her head, using her left to tickle Alicia's ribs. The brunette laughed and squirmed, trying to escape the barrage of fingers moving between her ribs.   
"Fuckin..shit Elyza!" she shouted between breaths.

As soon as the words spilled from her lips Elyza froze, her entire body heating up. She looked down into wide green eyes, that were quickly darkening much like they had the night before. The air around them grew thick and sparked with the static between the two. Without thinking she leaned down and kissed the parted lips below her. A soft sigh escaped Alicia as Elyza released her hands, and she quickly tangled them into blonde hair, deepening their kiss. Just then the door opened banging into the wall on its hinges and Elyza leapt off of the younger girl only to come face to face with Madison in the doorway. Their expressions were mirrored in shock until one quickly turned sheepish and the other narrowed her eyes. 

"Did I say come in, Jesus mom!" Alicia yelped from the bed, throwing the blankets aside and stepping in front of Elyza.   
"I was coming to let you two know that breakfast is ready. Get dressed so we can eat, and then you and I," she said pointing to Alicia and then to herself, "Need to have a conversation."   
She gave Elyza one more look that can only be described as the _look_ one receives from a protective parent, and then turned on her heel to leave. Alicia slammed the door shut and turned back to Elyza. When she narrowed her eyes the sheepish look returned to the blondes face. She smiled a crooked grin, arched her eyebrow and rubbed the back of her neck. It was a strategic move, one she hoped would appear cute and convince Alicia not to be mad. For half a second it didn't work, but she saw Alicia take in her bedhead, and the marks down her cheeks, and she softened with a grin.

"We _also_ need to talk...about..this." She gestured between them.   
Elyza scoffed, "You started it princess!"  
"Not right now," Alicia said approaching Elyza's space. "Right now we need to get dressed, and then figure out how to keep my mother from throwing you off the boat." She stepped forward with every word, effectively backing Elyza into the end table between the two beds. The words that came from Alicia's mouth were innocent enough, but the way she said them was definitely not.

All her years of cocky confidence were washed away in Alicia's space. She gulped, and glanced down to the girls lips, then back up to dark green eyes. The younger girl leaned in, smiled, and stepped back with a devious look on her face. "Now get dressed, we have breakfast to get to." She gathered a change of clothes and left Elyza gaping at her, still leaned against the end table. 

\------------------------

Elyza was introduced to Daniel’s daughter, Ophelia at breakfast. It didn’t escape her attention that the woman was attractive, and that fact did not get by Alicia either. She could feel the younger girl’s gaze burning into the side of her head as she made conversation with Ophelia. When she glanced up, she found that the heat came from not one, but two sets of eyes as Nick glared at them as well. There was a new fact to file away, the Clarks were a jealous bunch. Elyza smiled to herself, she actually appreciated it. Another fact for her to remember, Nick totally had the hots for Ophelia. If there was one thing she had learned about dating girls with brothers, it was always keep dirt on them. In an effort to keep the Clark siblings from simultaneously combusting, she turned her full attention back to Alicia. This, in turn, earned her yet another burning stare, from Madison. Elyza puffed her cheeks with air, let it out and settled on talking to Chris, who sat directly across from her. He seemed harmless enough, and she was no longer melting under the _sassmaster family_ glare. 

While they all ate breakfast, family and strangers alike, Elyza started to feel a little like life was normal again. In their little bubble on the yacht, everything could be okay. The feeling of normalness was reinforced when Madison stood up and called Alicia outside with her. A new kind of nervousness ate at Elyza. She wasn’t sure why she cared whether Alicia’s mother liked her or not, but she did care. She tried not to think of what they were possibly talking about, and attmepted to have conversation with Alicia’s brothers. For thirty minutes they sat around the table, talking about their lives before, talking about the war stories they now had, swapping the best techniques to take out a walker. The two brothers were entranced in Elyza’s chronicles of zombie termination. The three were so wrapped up in conversation, they almost missed Alicia and Madison enter the room.

Alicia’s face was one of utter mortification. She looked at Elyza, and mouthed, “I’m so sorry.” Elyza frowned, but didn’t have the time to be confused because Madison looked to her and said, “Elyza? Will you come with me?”  
Elyza paled, her eyes grew wide and she fought the urge to look back to Alicia. She nodded her head, and followed Madison onto the deck. With one last glance over her shoulder she saw Alicia with her face on the table, Chris looking confused, and the biggest shit-eating grin on Nick’s face. Elyza liked his sense of humor, she could see them getting along. Her thoughts of friendship were interrupted with Madison clearing her throat. She sat on the couch in the sun, and motioned for Elyza to join her. There was no way this could end well, parents were not generally fans of Elyza Lex.

“Elyza, I know you’re probably thinking that I’m about to tear your head off, but I just want to let you know right now that I’m not. Actually, I wanted to tell you how grateful I am for you.” Elyzas eyes were bulged out so far open she was half surprised they didn’t fall out on slinkies like a cartoon. “You kept my daughter safe for almost four days, and you brought her back to me. I can never thank you enough for that.” Elyza just nodded, unsure of what to say. “Alicia can be a lot to handle on her good days, so I just wanted to ask you what is going on with you two?”  
For a second, Elyza was dumbfounded. Her head was squarely attached to her shoulders, her ears were not ringing with shouts, her cheeks were not burning from being slapped. She shook herself out of her stupor and said, “I’m still not sure myself. And Alicia isn’t difficult to handle. If anything, she has more patience with me than anyone I’ve ever met.”  
The answer seemed to please Madison, she gave a small smile. “I would ask what your plans are,” she sighed, “But who has plans these days?”  
“I plan to keep her safe. No matter what happens to me, I plan to keep her alive.” Elyza was shocked at her own answer. She hadn’t expected to voice such strong emotions to this woman. Madison watched her with knowing eyes, gave her a sad smile and stood up. She turned to Elyza and said, “There is so little happiness right now. Alicia is happy when you’re around. The boys seem to be enjoying your company too. I would never take happiness away from my kids, they’ve all been through too much as it is.”

Elyza smirked, her usual self-assured personality leaking through her politeness, “Don’t you worry Momma Clark, there's plenty of me to go around.” The joke slipped out. She couldn’t stop it, but she clamped her jaw shut trying to bite the tail of the words before Madison realized what she said. The woman just stared at her for a minute, and then she laughed. She laughed hard. In her relief, Elyza laughed with her, thankful the woman didn’t react negatively. The two women stood outside laughing, when the doors of the cabin opened and Alicia, Chris and Nick caught them trying to catch their breath. Alicia looked worried for their health, the two boys looked confused. Madison took a deep breath, and looked to Alicia when she spoke pointing at Elyza, “You’ve got your hands full with this one kid.” She made her way inside, pulling the two boys with her, leaving Elyza and Alicia out on the deck. Elyza sat back on the couch, resting her arm on the back, he feet kicked up.

“Should we have that talk now, princess?”  
“What did you do to my mother?!”  
Elyza smirked and said, winking, “I gave her a taste of some good Elyza Lex babe!”  
Alicia gasped, then sat on the edge of the couch and slapped Elyza’s arm.  
"She's right. You are a handful. Lets have that talk."  
"Elyza looked down at her own chest, scrunched up the right side of her face and said, "Eeeeeh, it's a little more than a handful."


	9. Cotton Mouth

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Look, guys, I drank entirely too much for a Thursday night, so please accept this short fluffy chapter as penance. I'll write another chapter tonight, when I'm feeling less like a zombie myself

"Matt would have been happy that it was you." Alicia said as she reached for Elyza's hand. Elyza didn't say anything, she just looked to the planks of the deck, tears forming in her eyes. "Elyza please don't feel guilty. We were friends before he asked me out, and he was a good guy. But he told me about you. He adored you, Elyza. He would be happy that it was you that I was fall...." Alicia cut herself short, and stared wide eyed at the planks along with Elyza.  
The words caught the blondes attention, and she looked to Alicia with soft eyes. She heard the misstep, and even though she didn't say what she meant, Elyza understood. Their talk had been heavy, weighted with emotion and guilt and uncertainty, and they were tired. The Australian sought to remedy that in what she considered the best way.

"Hey sassmaster?"  
A huff, and an eye roll, Alicia was back to normal. "Yeah?"  
"Do you wanna get really, really stoned?"  
Alicia looked at her with confusion, "Excuse me?"  
"That is what Americans call it yeah? I may have found like, a huge stash of weed at the house we crashed at. And I may have hidden it in my motorcycle."  
Alicia contemplated the idea, "Do you think that's the best idea Elyza? The whole world is falling apart, plus, Nick is a drug addict."

Elyza smirked at her, "The world is falling apart, yet here we are, sitting in a fancy yacht. We're not fighting walkers. No people have tried to fuck with us yet. And weed is totally not a threat babe, it's as natural as your hipster herbal tea."  
Elyza could see Alicia debating it, weighing the odds in her head. The blonde shrugged and pulled out her pack of cigarettes.  
Alicia spoke up, "You know, those will kill you. And give you wrinkles."  
"Not all of them are filled with tobacco doll." 

She bit off the filter, spit it into the ocean and produced a zippo from one of the many pockets of her jacket. Alicia was watching her with curiosity and Elyza realized, "What, babe have you ever smoked before?"  
Alicia nodded yes, "Only once or twice, but not like that." She said referring to the makeshift joint Elyza was holding.  
"Ah yeah, it's not as good as a bong, but it's the best we got." She gasped, "how rude of me, I almost took greens! Here gorgeous, ladies first."  
Alicia didn't question what the hell greens were, she just took the cigarette and lit it, inhaling deeply and nearly coughing her lungs up. Elyza tried not to laugh, but she couldn't contain herself. Alicia handed it over to her with a sarcastic look and after she took a hit she leaned back looking at the cabin of the yacht.  
"Let's climb up, and finish this with a sun nap." 

Elyza stuck the joint between her teeth and lifted Alicia up, helping her on to the roof. Once she was safely on top, Elyza took a few steps back, ran forward, planted a foot on the wall and jumped up, hooking her arms on the flat roof. She planted her hands down and using all of her upper body strength she pulled herself to sit on the ledge.  
"Well, that was impressive."  
Elyza was trying to catch her breath while dragging on the joint, "I'm not sure if that was sarcasm princess, but it was pretty damn impressive. Not the first wall I've scaled in my life." Then she laid on her back, feet still dangling off the edge, blew out a cloud of smoke and passed the joint to Alicia. She heard the younger girl sit down behind her so she tipped her head back to see her. She scooted backwards so that her legs were no longer dangling, and the two lay side by side watching the blue sky fade into orange. 

Alicia had finally stopped coughing and was beginning to enjoy the small moment of easiness. She giggled at the thought of how normal this was, then giggled some more at the sound of her own laugh. She took another drag and Elyza laughed, "I think we've had enough princess. I don't want you to be off your head when we go inside. Just happy. Happy and high." She took the joint and snuffed it out, pulled out her pack of cigarettes and slipped it back in.  
She laid back down, her hands behind her head and sighed contentedly. Alicia's eyes grew heavy, and her limbs were weighted but relaxed, so she rolled into Elyza and rested her head on her chest. The blonde wrapped her left arm around the girls shoulder and tipped her head over to rest in Alicia's hair. The end of the world was long forgotten in moments like those. And maybe their lives had been taken from under their feet, but they needed something to live for. So why not moments like this? With another happy sigh, Elyza closed her eyes, oblivious and uncaring to the rest of the world.


	10. Like Real People Do

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Cabin fever was not conducive to Elyza being on her best behavior. She tried, she really did, but it rarely ever lasted. Due to the group having been in the same space for so long, it was easy to push buttons. But when Elyza got bored, she generally enjoyed flustering Chris. Reason being, if she flirted with the younger boy, Alicia would get jealous. It never failed, they had done the same song and dance for days and Chris still blushed but puffed his chest out, Alicia still ground her teeth and gripped Elyza's thigh under the table.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Forgive me, for I have sinned. You're welcome.  
> The song at the end and the chapter title is from Like Real People Do by Hozier.

Days on the Abigail seemed to pass in the same way miles drag on a 1000 mile road trip. They would inch by, so slowly, but then they were over and weeks had come and gone. Elyza had lost track of the date, the month, even time itself seemed to exist only in the earlier setting of the sun, and crisp chill of cooling ocean air. This is how the earth was born, the orbit of the sun waxing and waning. 

Elyza leaned against the rails on the back of the yacht, her blonde hair tied up, but still managing to get in her eyes. She was getting stir crazy. It was unlike her to sit still for long, she longed for a run, the earth beneath her feet, the miles of space empty and open to her. Alicia was the only thing that kept her sane on the ocean, kept her in orbit. It had been two weeks since they smoked on the rooftop, but Elyza felt that it had been lifetimes ago. She sighed, and leaned over to rest her forehead down onto the cool metal. 

Tanned, lean arms slipped around her waist, a chin dropped into her back. She smiled, if she was going to be trapped on a yacht in the Pacific, she wouldn't choose anyone else to be trapped with.  
"What're you doing out here Lyza? It's cold." The blonde turned in Alicia's arms, reaching her own out to hug the girl’s shoulders.  
"I'm afraid I've come down with cabin fever, gorgeous. So much time, so little to do. That is, unless you..." She earned a small thump on her back for that, but she'd expected it by now.

The two had grown closer than Elyza had ever been with anyone, her father included. Between the sassy quips, eye rolls and pursed lips, the brunette exhibited more patience and understanding than Elyza thought was possible. Though she relentlessly pushed the girls buttons, she found she could often make up for it with big blue eyes, a sultry smile, and a kiss here and there. There were other ways she'd very much like to make up for things, but Alicia wasn't ready. She'd never tell Elyza that, but the blonde knew. This was still new territory, somewhat terrifying and exotic lands. Beautiful and dangerous all at once. So Elyza didn't push her. The girl would come in due time. Elyza laughed aloud to her own terrible pun, and kissed the top of Alicia's head.  
"Let's go inside then princess. Find out what monstrosity Daniel has pulled from the ocean for us to eat today. 

And what a monstrosity it was. The group gathered around the table, bracing themselves for their meal. The centerpiece was a large platter, proudly presenting a gleaming eel, black and viscous, despite having been baked in the oven.  
Alicia openly expressed her distaste on her face, while Elyza chose a more sarcastic route. Pulling her best British accent she put her hand lightly to her chest and said, "Well by jove Daniel you've outdone yourself. I trust this delectable rarity will be served with fine wine as well?" The older man didn't bother reacting, but she was awarded with a snicker from Nick and Chris. The group had grown accustomed to Elyza's antics, and soon learned the more they appeared affected by her the worse she would be. 

Cabin fever was not conducive to Elyza being on her best behavior. She tried, she really did, but it rarely ever lasted. Due to the group having been in the same space for so long, it was easy to push buttons. But when Elyza got bored, she generally enjoyed flustering Chris. Reason being, if she flirted with the younger boy, Alicia would get jealous. It never failed, they had done the same song and dance for days and Chris still blushed but puffed his chest out, Alicia still ground her teeth and gripped Elyzas thigh under the table. 

“You been doin your push-ups junior?” she reached over the table to touch Chris’ bicep, “Look at that! Little flower is blooming before our very eyes!”  
“I’m not a flower Elyza. And yes I’ve been doing push-ups, you would know, you do them with me every day.” Chris huffed, pulling his arm away from the blonde’s fingers. She tiled her head down, and smirked at him below thick lashes, her eyes matching the water outside. She went to speak again, but was quickly stopped by fingers trailing up the inside of her right thigh. Alicia merely continued to eat, an innocent smile on her face, as she ran her left hand up Elyza's leg. Elyza bit down on her lip, and fought her eyes from rolling back. Her hands turned white from gripping her silverware and her breathing grew heavy. Madison noticed.

“Uhm, Elyza? Do you need medical attention?”  
Elyza looked at Alicia’s mother, and couldn’t help but feel somewhat ashamed about why she _may actually_ need medical attention. “No, no Momma Clark I’m alright. Just a little tired.” Her voice cracked as she spoke, but Madison just shook her head and went back to her dinner. 

She delicately set her fork down from her right hand, slipped it under the table and snagged Alicia’s hand just before she ran her fingers over the place that would have forced Elyza to unclench her jaw and groan. Alicia looked at her from the side of her eye, hiking an eyebrow up and smiling. Elyza let go of her hand, and the girl pulled it back to her own lap. She shifted, now uncomfortable in her tight pants. She was irritated at the fact that she had intended to fluster someone else, but now she was the one squirming in her chair. This would just not do. If she was going to be this frustrated, she was going to bring Alicia down with her.

She cut a piece of eel, and tossed it into her mouth. It wasn’t great, but it wasn’t terrible, so she let out a very over exaggerated moan, “Oh god, sooo good.” She saw Alicia stiffen in her chair, and focus back down to her plate. _Gotcha princess._ She smiled to herself as she chewed on another piece of eel. Another moan, and she had Alicia squirming. The rest of the table looked at her like she was crazy, but they only shook their heads and ignored her. As she went to take another bite, the hand returned to her leg, but instead of feather light fingers, it was gripping. A clear warning to cut it out. Elyza snorted, _fat chance_. She moaned around her food again, and Alicia’s hand was moving quickly then stopped to press into the seam of her jeans at her center. Elyza gasped, and coughed, trying to cover her jerky actions. She looked over to Alicia, who was flat out glaring now. She hadn’t removed her hand either. Elyza would have begun to think the girl was actually mad at her, if she couldn’t see how dark her eyes were. She was hungry, but not for what was on her dinner plate. A slight pressure came from Alicia’s fingers again, and Elyza squeaked, before she shot her chair back and stood. 

“Dear Daniel, thank you for this,” she paused looking to Alicia, “pleasurable meal. I’m off to bed, it’s been one hell of a night.” The group nodded and called out their goodnights, as Elyza made her way to the room she shared with Alicia. She was a few steps away from their door when her back was slammed into the wall, hands on her hips pinning her there. Green eyes flooded her, and before she could recover, lips were attacking hers. A thigh pressed between her legs, Alicia’s weight leaned up against her, hands gripping her clothes aggressively. She felt Alicia’s tongue dance across her lips, so she opened her mouth, her hands sliding up to auburn hair. She moaned as she felt Alicia’s tongue in her mouth, gripped the girls hair tighter. The boat lurched, making them stumble toward their door. Elyza reached back, throwing the door open without breaking their kiss. Alicia pushed them into the room, and kicked the door shut.

Elyza spoke up, trying to catch her breath. “What about your family?”  
“What about them?”  
“You’re okay with your mom hearing you...”  
Elyza felt hands pulling her shirt up, and it was quickly coming up over her head. She looked wide eyed at Alicia, still stumbling in shock of the girl’s sudden dominance.  
Alicia stepped toward her, backing her into the room, until her knees hit the bed. The girl pushed her gently, but with some force. She dropped onto the bed, breathing heavily, and then Alicia’s mouth was all over her. Lips pressed wet kisses into her neck, teeth grazed across her collar bones. Alicia’s hands were everywhere, running across her naked stomach, slipping under her bra, playing with the waistline of her jeans. She had never been this out of control in her life. Alicia had taken the reins, and Elyza gladly handed them over. She scooted back up on the bed, the brunette following, crawling up her body. Alicia straddled her hips, and sat up pulling her own shirt off. She descended back to Elyza’s neck, nipping behind her ear, then her earlobe. Alicia whispered into Elyza’s ear, causing a shiver to run through her whole body, heat began to pool in her stomach, coiling tight in her abdomen. “I’m tired of waiting. I’m ready, I’ve been ready. Are you?”

Elyza gulped, as Alicia leaned over her, black green eyes swallowing her whole. She nodded, and reached out for her, trying to kiss her again, but Alicia pulled back and growled out, “I asked you a question Elyza. Are you ready for me?”  
Elyza shook the fog from her mind and nearly shouted, “Yes! Yes yes yes…” Her consent was quickly cut off by another kiss, this one less rough, but still hungry. She had finally gained her bearings, and kissed Alicia deeply. Her hands slipped around the girls back to unclasp her bra, letting it fall from her shoulders. Alicia bit at the spot on her neck that made her arch up, and she felt hands undoing her bra in the same moment. The movement was so smooth, she couldn’t help but smirk, “That was smooth princess, you’ve done this before eh?”  
Alicia growled, “Don’t ruin this Elyza.”

The offending garment was tossed aside, and Alicia dropped on to Elyza, letting their skin touch for the first time. Both girls moaned into another kiss, and as Alicia began grinding down into Elyza’s hips, she thrusted up, flipping them over. It was Elyza’s turn to drop atom bomb kisses down Alicia’s neck, over her collar bone, to the swell of her breasts. With each kiss there was a soft bite, then another kiss soothing quiet bruises on the tanned skin. Alicia’s hands tangled into blonde hair as Elyza rolled her tongue ring over a nipple, making the girls hips buck up into her ribs. Blonde hair splayed out over Alicia’s chest as Elyza made her way down to Alicia’s stomach, biting ribs softly, then to the waistline of her pants. She glanced up at Alicia’s hungry eyes, and the girl husked out, “Off. Off. Take them off.” Elyza happily obliged, and popped the button of the girl’s pants. Alicia lifted her hips allowing Elyza to pull both her jeans and panties down off of her waist.  
  
Once the clothes were tossed aside, Elyza climbed back up Alicia’s legs, trailing open mouth kisses up the inside of her thigh. Alicia’s hand came down to stop her as she neared her center, and Elyza looked up at her, confused. “Not yet. Yours too. Take them off.” Without moving from her position, Elyza reached down with one hand and unbuttoned her own pants. She pushed them off her waist and used her legs to shimmy the rest of the way out of them. The debacle wasn’t without struggle, but Elyza refused to give up her position between Alicia’s legs. A small giggle escaped the brunette, and Elyza shot her a defiant look.  
“You do realize it would have taken you ten seconds to stand up and take them off right?”  
“Don’t ruin this Alicia.” Elyza echoed the younger girls words form moments before.  
“Mockery is not the product of a strong… _OH_ ” Alicia’s sass was cut short as Elyzas mouth met her center.  
  
Usually sex was easy for Elyza. A place of familiar comfort and muscle memory. But she was nervous with Alicia. She focused on every movement of her tongue, every brush of her teeth, the angle and pressure of her fingers. She reveled in the moans of the girl below her, she devoured every inch of her, taking her in hungrily with eyes and mouth and hands. Alicia reached down and pulled Elyza’s head up. She didn’t stop her hand, but moved up, leaving another trail of kisses along Alicia’s chest and neck until the girl grabbed her face and kissed her hard. The heavy waves outside their room rocked the yacht, aiding in the rocking of Alicia’s hips, deepening Elyza’s thrusting. Alicia’s nails dragged down her back, their steady rhythm building inside of her ready to burst out like a caged animal. Elyza curled her fingers, hitting the soft spot inside of Alicia, and the girl slammed her hips down hard, throwing her head back and arching her back up off the bed. She turned her head and bit into Elyzas arm as she came unraveled around her. She tipped over the edge moaning Elyza’s name over and over. Elyza thought it was the most beautiful hymn she’d ever heard. Finally Alicia dropped into the bed, panting and limp.

“I…wow….holy..I don’t…..how?”  
Elyza laughed and dropped her weight over to the side of Alicia, propped up on her elbow, running her fingers over Alicia’s stomach. “Maybe just give yourself a minute babe.”  
Instead of waiting for her brain to remember to tell her mouth how to speak, Alicia leaned over and kissed Elyza softly. She moved her hand around the blonde’s neck to cup her jaw and kissed her deeply. She pushed Elyza onto her back, rolling on top of her again.  
\----------------------------------------------------------

The sun was peaking over the choppy water when the two settled in to sleep. With Alicia curled happily around her, Elyza reached over to the iHome on the end table and selected soft music to drift off too. They both sunk into each other, sated, exhausted and happy. Just two teenagers in the middle of the apocalypse, willfully ignorant to the world around them.

_I will not ask you where you came from_  
_I will not ask you neither should you_  
_Honey just put your sweet lips on my lips_  
_We should just kiss like real people do_


	11. Landfall

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Travis ran his hands through his hair, sighing, "This is crazy Elyza. But it better work."

The thunder over the ocean was loud enough to wake the dead. The waves were growing restless, biting the hull of the yacht with dull teeth, sending it careening in every which way. The water and the loud growling of the heavens were not what woke Elyza from her midday sleep, however. She awoke to soft lips pressing against her forehead, fingers trailing lightly down her cheeks, her jaw, her neck. A nip at her pulse, wandering hands riding the waves of her body. 

"Couldn't get enough Australian kisses last night, huh princess?" Her voice raspy from deep slumber, husky from the ministrations of the girl sitting on her hips. She didn't get a response, only a sweet kiss on her lips. She finally opened her eyes, met with those soft cheekbones, the striking jawline. To her surprise, the eyes of the girl were more a soft jade than dark. The hunger was there, but not ravenous like the night before. That look both terrified Elyza, and anchored her all at once. It was the look of something she hadn't felt in a terribly long time. It looked like home. 

She reached out and grabbed Alicia's neck, pulling her in for another soft, careful kiss. There was a certain dozy slowness to kisses in the morning. They were slow, and languid, but they meant more than rabid, biting kisses in the dark. They meant they were still here. No one had gotten up to leave in the night. They were still here, wrapped in each other, their individual smells mixing themselves to become something different than when they were alone. They were slowly becoming one.

It seemed that Alicia had every intention of lazily continuing what they had started that night, but before she could get to it, their door swung open. The brunette yelped, and threw herself onto her back beside Elyza, pulling the sheet up over her chest. Nick stepped in, and snorted in amusement.   
"I figured as much. You two would be having sex in the middle of a hurricane. As adorable, and somewhat disgusting as this whole scene is to me, you guys need to get up. We're going to have to make landfall, there really is a huge storm coming our way." With another amused laugh, he left them, shutting the door behind him. 

"Well, your brother has officially become the most efficient clockblock on this yacht." 

"He's officially seen me in more compromising positions than I feel comfortable with."

"Awh doll, he wasn't lookin at you." She winked. She earned a slap to the shoulder. All expected things. "As much as I really hate to leave unfinished business love, we should get dressed. If we need to dock, I'll need to get ready."

"We'll need to get ready. I'm not going anywhere without you." Alicia looked at her with overwhelming intensity. She would willingly drown herself in those green eyes every day until she died, if the girl allowed her. Instead of arguing, she nodded, and dragged herself from the small bed. It took them longer than usual to get dressed, as they had to scour the room for clothing haphazardly removed hours prior.

With Alicia in Elyza's tight black jeans, a blue vneck and her addidas jacket, Elyza was forced to wear her last pair of blue jeans along with a black tshirt, a gray hoodie and her ever trusty leather jacket over it all. She pulled her boots on and braced herself on the wall, trying to steady her feet on the rocking boat. The two made their way upstairs into the kitchen where the family was waiting. 

"Nice of you ladies to join us." Strand drawled out, making it clear he was aware of what their absence meant. Alicia rolled her eyes, and Elyza smirked. The blonde walked over to the doors that led to the deck, gauging the brewing storm outside. "She's gonna be a nasty one I reckon." She said to no one in particular. 

Strand nodded, "We need to find safe harbor soon. I don't think Abigail can handle the turbulence."   
Elyza's blood began to pump heavily at his words. Back to land. Back to her kingdom. She opened the door, despite the protests of the group and stepped outside. Soft mist clung to her eyelashes, ran through her hair and dusted her lips. She smiled a devilish grin, she was going back to what she knew. The voice in the back of her head worried for Alicia, but she pushed it down in favor of the high of the thrill. The adrenaline readying itself in her veins. Alicia was tough, and brave, and Elyza would protect her at all costs. It was moments like this that she knew she and Nick were not so different. While he was in withdrawal from drugs made by the hands of man, Elyza was craving the drug her own body created itself. She smiled fully at the brewing storm, silently thanking Posiedon for forcing them out of his territory. 

She turned back to the cabin and shut the door behind her. When met with questioning stares, she shrugged and said, "I like the rain." She looked to Alicia and could see the girl understood. She liked the rain, true enough, but she loved the storm outside. She loved to stand fearless in front of the power of the earth. She felt that maybe she was a storm to Alicia. And if she was a storm, Alicia was her lighthouse, stronger than she appeared and able to weather more than this. 

Elyza took her guns from a cabinet they had been stored in, and set them all on the dining table. With all seven sets of eyes on her she began to dismantle her handguns, using a red rag she kept in her pocket to clean each small piece. As she finished cleaning one weapon, she reassembled it, slipped in the magazine and racked the chamber. She always kept one in the chamber, ready to fire as quickly as she could pull the gun from its holster. When she moved to the next handgun, Daniel followed suit, and placed his rifle on the table to clean and prep it. The members of the group who carried guns soon did the same, as they finally realized what going back to land would mean.

Alicia sat on the couch behind the table, watching the blonde girl meticulously clean every single small bit of metal. She could see the electric anticipation in her back and shoulders. The way she slightly shivered and her leg shook. She knew the girl was wild, she knew she craved the earth again, but she had no idea how much it was. A pang of guilt hit her behind her ribs as she realized how much Elyza had given up for her. She had made the mistake of thinking she could domesticate a primal thing, but she could not. In any case, the domestication of Elyza would mean she would lose the underlying animal that she was. Alicia was not willing to lose any bit of the girl. So she vowed to herself to ensure Elyza was not caged again. She would be the lion tamer that relented, and allowed claws to dig into her heart. 

Elyza could feel Alicia watching her, she could feel the girls eyes closely study her. As she hard as she tried to remain still, to remain calm, she knew the younger girl could sense the excitement in her. She was afraid that Alicia would no longer want the side of her that was brutal. That would kill. She worried and fretted enough to cause her adrenaline to simmer, but she knew she couldn't stamp it down forever. She was not a domestic animal. She could be tamed as much as any other, but the thrill of the hunt would always cause her blood to pump heavily.

As she began to start the tug of war of anxiety again, she felt hands on her shoulders, sliding down over her neck and hooking themselves just over her chest. If Alicia could not in fact read her mind, she must have some intense soul connection to Elyza, because the girl always knew just when to reassure her. To touch her skin. The brunette's chin gently rested against her shoulder, blonde hair tickling dark eyelashes. Everyone at the table could see them, but Alicia didn't care. If Alicia didn't care, neither did Elyza. She started to relax as she cleaned her final and favorite gun, with Alicia draped around her shoulders. The shotgun took a lot more time, a lot more patience, but with the smell of coconut and tanning lotion in her space, she could focus on anything. 

\------------------  
The yacht began to near shore, large mountains of sand opening their arms in welcome. Strand maneuvered the boat into a deep cove that would hopefully protect it, and dropped anchor. They would have to take a few trips on the dingy to the shore to get everyone off the water. 

"We should go first, try to find a house to bunker down in, before the rest follow." Elyza said, looking at Daniel. "We can clear a space up, and then come back for the others." The old man nodded his consent with the plan. 

"We will leave Nick, Chris, Madison, Ophelia and Alicia." He responded.

Elyza quickly felt nails dig in to her arm by the girl behind her. She eyed her carefully. There was something there that she didn't want to fight in Alicia, so, with a soft sigh and a shake of her head she turned back to Daniel. "Alicia has to come with us." Then she mumbled, "it's either that or I lose my right arm." The grip on her bicep lessened, but didn't drop. Daniel watched the two closely, he wanted to argue, Elyza could tell. Instead he shrugged, and settled in to the dingy with Travis. Personally Elyza would be more comfortable having Alicia watch her back with her baseball bat than Travis, but he was strong and she was too excited to argue. 

The closer the little raft got to land, the more Elyza's blood hummed in her ears. She was practically vibrating with excitement. When they hit the sand, she was the first out, reaching her arm back to feel Alicia, then moving forward toward the dunes. She jogged into the sand mountain until she was forced on all fours, slipping and sliding up as best she could. Every few feet she'd look back to check on the others, and see them a few feet behind her. When she reached the peak of the hill, what she saw made her drop to her stomach, so only her eyes were peeking over. She threw her hand back, telling the others to stop. 

There were at least 30 walkers milling around the sand, stuck in the valley of dunes. Just beyond the horde, over another small set of dunes were the houses they were looking for. The constant rain fall would help in that the walkers were having a hard time slugging through the muddy sand, but they would still need to take all of them out. The group would be in danger with a horde that large right next to their hideout. 

Alicia peeked her eyes over the top of the sand, and gasped before Elyza put her hand over her mouth. "Ssshh princess, we don't want them to come after us before were ready."

"What do you mean before were ready? We don't want them coming after us at all!"

Elyza shook her head, "We're gonna have to draw them out, gorgeous. They're packed together too tight here, and we shouldn't use guns out here. The sound will carry for miles." The blonde turned and slid down the wet sand a few feet, then dug in her heels and motioned for the others to come over. She drew some lines in the sand with one hand, the other tapping her chin. For a few moments she said nothing, her brow furrowed, lips pursed. Finally she looked up,   
"Alright troops, I'm going to call this operation naptime. We're going to need all hands on deck, because this plan may be a bit absurd." They huddled around as she explained her plan. She earned a scoff from Travis here and there, an uncomfortable shift from Alicia, but Daniel seemed to understand the entirety. 

Travis ran his hands through his hair, sighing, "This is crazy Elyza. But it better work."


	12. Operation Naptime

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I wanted to give Alicia a little bit of Lexa in this chapter. I'm going to stick with the reincarnated soul mates thing, but they won't remember. It'll just continue to be subtle hints and reminders.

The rain began to fall in earnest on their last trip back to shore. With the Abigail safely anchored down, and Strand tucked away in his cabin after refusing to leave the yacht, Elyza started up the dingy. The weight of her motorcycle sat heavily in the middle, dangerously close to too much for the small engine. The ocean was growing restless as the storm began to truly settle above her head. There were seven people on the shoreline, heavily depending on her plan to work. 

As she made her way to the beach, she glanced back at the yacht, and a feeling of finality washed over her. Her gut told her the boat would not be there when the water calmed. It would be far too optimistic to believe that if the yacht didn't sink, Strand wouldn't leave them behind. Luckily she was prepared for the situation, as in the several trips to and from the boat she had managed to take almost all of the food, extra fuel and medicine without any notice. If the man was going to leave them behind, he would only have enough to last alone for a few days. There was no guilt in Elyza for stealing the man's supplies, survival of the fittest, eye for an eye as they say. 

The dingy cut through the rough waves, steadily approaching the shoreline. Elyza watched the group scramble to follow through with her tasks, and she couldn't help up feel hope. Her plan could work, it HAD to work. The boat brushed into the sand, and Travis and Nick rushed forward to grab the ropes and tow it in. Elyza un-strapped the bike, and pushed it forward over the front of the boat into the sand. The tires immediately sunk into the soft wet sand, and she leaned it over on its kickstand. 

"Alright mates, are we ready?" No one spoke, only nods all around. "Remember, only use your gun if its life or death. The sound is going to carry, but let's hope the thunder drowns it out yeah?" More nodding. She turned to Alicia, partly because she wanted to ensure the girl was armed with her bat, but partly because she needed the confidence boost she always got from looking at her trusting expression. She took a deep breath, and took in the group. They all looked to her for guidance, they needed her to be sure. So she let their confidence in her fill herself up, pushing back into her cocky state of mind. She smirked, her blue eyes sharp, full of intense icy fire, and kissed Alicia on the mouth. There were some disgruntled murmurs, Alicia's eyes went wide, but no one said anything. 

"Let's get to it then folks." 

Nick and Travis went to either side of the motorcycle and began to push t toward the smallest of the sand dunes, while the rest stood ready to fight. They had dug a small canyon into the sand, making so the walkers would have to form single file to get through to their meals. Once in place, Elyza sat atop her bike, turned it on and looked one last time to Alicia. The brunette nodded, her face all seriousness, to show Elyza she was ready to do whatever she needed to. The nod was clear enough, so without any further hesitation, Elyza shouted, "Commence Operation Naptime!" She twisted the throttle back to rev the engine, deafening everyone, and catching the attention of the undead horde.

Slowly the walkers slugged through the wet sand, and began to make their way into the canyon the group had dug out. Daniel and Travis were positioned closest to the mouth of the canyon, followed by Nick and Elyza, then Madison and Chris, and finally Alicia and Ophelia.

The walkers started to pour out of the tunnel, and the carnage dance had begun. Travis hesitated to kill the first one through, but Daniel took the reins and crushed the dead man’s skull with his crow bar. Elyza shoved Travis back, taking his spot. She couldn't afford to have him first in line if he was going to have a conscience. Her newly acquired machete sliced cleanly through another waterlogged walker skull and as blood spattered across her face she couldn't help but smile. Her chest swelled with pride as she glimpsed Alicia with her teeth bared, swinging her bat like a war sword, bashing rotting walkers. Vulgar as it was, in this world, this was living. Survival and strength, brute force and power, blood and sweat. 

\------------  
An hour had passed, and the last of the walkers were stumbling over their fallen comrades desperately trying to reach the living meals that were slaughtering them one by one. Elyza stood atop a mountain of bodies, cutting down more, trophies to her king of the hill game. She had blood smeared across her face like war paint, the crimson mixing into black, her blue eyes shining in the night. Her hair was tied up, but soaked in a deep red, the hints of blonde shining through. She twirled her machete, shoved it through one last skull and turned to look for Alicia. 

In the midst of her battle high, she had almost lost track of the girl. Luckily all she had to do was listen for the telltale growl and snarl, look for white teeth bared, and she'd find the brunette. When Elyza did spot her, she saw something that made her feel like she was burning from the inside out. The younger girl was facing off with two walkers, her bat in one hand and Elyza's Bowie knife in the other. Her stance was wide and balanced, she appeared comfortable and in control. As if she was some kind of battle hardened warrior and not a suburban 18 year old girl. Elyza watched in awe as Alicia swiftly swung her bat into one walker, and jammed the knife into the other. 

She felt her feet moving forward, her shock propelling her toward this animal she'd never seen before. Only she had seen it before, but in the mirror. When jade eyes met sapphire, Elyza felt the fire envelop her. It resonated from her stomach and poured out of every inch of her. Her ears were ringing with the blood pumping in her veins, and Alicia was screaming something at her but she couldn't hear her voice. She could see fear on her face as she reared back with her knife. Elyza frowned, confused, but her eyes widened as Alicia launched the Bowie knife at her. She didn't move, only braced herself as the knife soared over her shoulder and straight into the open mouth of the corpse right behind her.

\----------  
Elyza collapsed into the sand next to Alicia, who was splayed out on her back. They were all soaked through with a mixture of grime. Between the rain, the blood, the sweat and the sand, they were almost unrecognizable. Elyza felt Alicia's hand wander into her own, interlacing their fingers as they struggled to catch their breath. 

Nick's face came into view as he moved to stand over the girls, the rain causing clear streaks of skin to show on his cheeks like tears. "As comfortable as you two lovely ladies look, what do you say about finding ourselves a house now?" 

Elyza smirked at him and sat up, taking stock of the others. If she wasn't so exhausted, she'd laugh at the comically laid out bunch of people, all covered in the same unintentional camouflage. She nodded, poked Alicia in the ribs earning her a growl, and dragged herself up to stand. "There's a little cottage just over the hill. It should be good enough for tonight, then we can worry about finding something more comfortable."

The short trek over the small sand dunes to the cottage had everyone on the verge of passing out. They all carried a duffle bag of supplies swiped from the yacht, adding to their exhaustion. Elyza straightened up as they neared the door of the house, prepared to fight again if there were any walkers locked inside. She pushed the door open, and knocked hard on the frame, the same as she did every time. They waited a few minutes, but when no groaning dead things shuffled out, they hurried in to clear the rooms. By some miracle there were no rotting corpses in the little house, so they all moved to settle in. 

Off to the left of the door was the living room, filled with only one small couch, a coffee table and a tv stand. There was a fireplace across from the couch, wood still sitting in it as if the previous tenants were ready to settle in front of it. The room smelled sickly sweet, emanating from a large collection of dead flowers in the corner. 

Elyza got to work on covering the windows with whatever she could find, which ended up being a roll of tin foil and towels. With the windows safely covered, Alicia started a small fire, enough to heat the room, but not so much so the smoke would pour from the chimney. Madison, Travis, Daniel and Ophelia retreated to the two bedrooms down the hall to the right of the front door, leaving Chris, Nick, Alicia and Elyza to find space to sleep in the living room. Elyza stripped herself of her boots, and moved to pull her pants off before she heard a throat clear. Alicia was glaring, shaking her head no, while Chris openly stared at her. 

"Babe I'm not sleeping in this grime. It's got to go."

"You don't need to strip right here Elyza." She crossed her arms over her chest, "Bathroom. Now." 

Elyza huffed, but complied and trudged after Alicia down the hall to the bathroom. The water didn't turn on when she tried the sink, so instead she took a large bowl from a cabinet, opened the bathroom window and let it fill with rain. She set the bowl on the toilet and plugged the bathtub, as Alicia slipped out of the room mumbling something about good sleep shirts. Elyza dumped the bowl of rain water into the tub, and repeated the process until it was half full. The door creaked open as Alicia poked her head in, looked around, then slipped back inside the room.

Elyza chuckled, "Were you checking if I was decent, before coming in?"

Alicia shrugged, "It's the polite thing to do."

Elyza laughed hard at that, a genuine deep belly laugh. "Oh babe, I think we're past the point of using our manners. You've had your..."

"OKAY. You can stop that there, I only checked out of habit. Are you going to get in the bath, or are you going to sit here and crack jokes all night?" 

"You don't want to talk about how good I..."

"ELYZA LEX." Alicia pointed to the tub, her expression mixed with embarrassment and irritation. Elyza gave in and stripped down, then slipped into the tub. She grit her teeth at the cold water, but sunk in more. Her desire to be clean was much stronger than the discomfort of cold water. Alicia took the bowl and filled it a few more times, filling the tub more fully. Elyza watched her and frowned.  
"Get in with me."  
Alicia looked at her and smiled. "I thought you'd never ask."

The brunette settled between Elyza's legs, and leaned back to rest her head on her chest. Elyza cupped water in her hands and began to run it through the long chestnut hair. "You saved my life today princess. And you can throw knives?"

Alicia hummed, "Hmm. I'm good at darts. I did save your life. One life debt of many paid in full."

"You don't owe me debts. I don't do it in expectation of something in return."

"So the whole time this really wasn't your master plan to get in my pants?" Alicia responded, smiling up at the blonde. 

Elyza scoffed, "You underestimate me doll. This whole time it was my master plan to get you OUT of your pants. Then there are no barriers to worry about at all." She smiled and kissed Alicia's shoulder, then returned to cleaning the blood from her hair. Once Alicia's hair was shining and soft, they switched places. Elyza was far worse off, her blonde hair stained pink even after a thorough wash. The black across her eyes required a harsh scrub but eventually they were both clean enough, and shivering in the cold water. 

Alicia stood and grabbed the towels she had brought in, handing one to Elyza. They dried and dressed in the large t-shirts scrounged from stranger’s closets, and made their way back into the living room. Chris was sprawled out on the couch, while Nick was propped up near the fireplace.  
"Go ahead and settle in princess, I have one last thing to do." She stepped over to Nick, and nudged him with her foot. "Hey guy, get up. Let's go outside."

Nick looked up at her confused, but picked himself up and followed her through the back of the house and in to the backyard. The porch ceiling kept them dry from the onslaught of rain pouring from the sky. Lightning struck all around them making the air taste tangy and sharp. Elyza pulled her pack of smokes from her coat, and handed one over to Nick. He frowned, but took the cigarette, letting Elyza light it for him. She leaned back against the wall of the house, took a long drag of her cigarette and said, "You and me, we aren't that different you know?"

"Yeah. I've started to gather that."

"Strand won't be there when this storm is over."

Nick laughed, "Good. I hate that boat."

"Me too. Your withdrawals are almost done."

"Yeah."

She nodded and there was a comfortable silence between the two as they smoked. Elyza closed her eyes, enjoying the unspoken, unexpected friendship she had begun to feel with Alicia's brother. He finally broke the quiet and turned to look in Elyza's eyes.

"You're in love with my sister."

"Yeah."

He nodded, and leaned back into the wall. He took another drag and smiled. For the moment, everything was quiet. They stood on the porch, smoke filling their lungs, and let the exhaustion wrap around them.


	13. Suburbia

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it took so long to update, it's been a little hectic around here. As usual if you want you can leave comments with suggestions for the story, I'm open to anything!

Lightning crackled across the sky, replacing the sun's light from behind thick black clouds. The storm had raged throughout the night, and continued to pick up in intensity, keeping everyone locked up in the house. Elyza leaned against the kitchen counter as she watched Madison cook the group breakfast, continuously trying to sneak morsels when her back was turned. She inched her hand forward, trying to snag a piece of spam, but Madison grabbed her wrist, and narrowed her eyes.

"You can wait with everyone else kid. If I catch you again you'll be served last."

Elyza pushed her bottom lip out, fluttered her eyelashes and sighed. Madison chuckled and shook her head, "Those big blue eyes may work on my daughter sweetie, but I'm a mom. I know a pout when I see one." She slapped the blonde girls arm playfully, "Now out. Away with you, go sit in the living room with everyone else."  
Elyza smirked and sauntered into the doorway of the living room, leaning up against the wood. Alicia was sprawled out on the couch, a gorgeous mess of long legs and arms and flowing auburn hair. She smiled as she watched the girl fidget in her sleep. 

"Hey heart eyes, there are other people in the room." Nick smirked at Elyza when she startled slightly at his voice. He was sitting in front of the fireplace working on a crossword he had dug up from snooping through the house. 

"Where's everyone else?" She asked, only seeing the siblings in the room, and Ophelia sitting in the window. Nick shrugged and made a vague gesture toward the rooms. "Enlightening." She said, and walked to the couch. She dropped down and sat on Alicia, eliciting a loud "mmpff" and a mumbled growl into a pillow. "What's that babe? You know, you're developing a habit of talking into pillows." 

Alicia arched up, and craned her head back to scowl at Elyza. "Wipe that smug look off your face, and get off you're heavy."

"Ooh so hostile when woken. You weren't asking me to get off of you the other..." A hand was slapped over her mouth, Alicia's eyes huge as Madison walked into the room. 

"Food is ready," she told them. Elyza was the first to jump up but Madison stopped her with a hand on her shoulder, "Go grab everyone else, you can wait since you've eaten half the spam already." Elyza considered arguing, but Madison gave her a look only mothers were capable of and she conceded. She hurried down the hall, eager to get back to the kitchen, knowing full well Alicia would take the lions share of their food. She pushed a bedroom door open to find Travis and Daniel talking lowly over a table and loudly interrupted them with a bang on the door and their notification that breakfast was served. She found Chris in the bathroom trying to trim his hair and couldn't help herself. The kid was just too easy. 

"Hey big guy, breakfast is ready." She said with a wink and a smirk. Chris huffed and rolled his eyes, which encouraged Elyza to push him further. "You know I can help with your hair." she reached out to grab a black lock, "you could stand to lose about 8 inches off of it." Chris jerked away from her and pushed past her out of the bathroom shaking his head. Then blonde laughed and followed him back in to the kitchen where everyone had gathered. Alicia had piled her plate high with spam, as Elyza had expected she would. Madison handed her a plate of food and she moved to sit at the table with the younger girl. 

Travis looked to her, "So what's the plan now? Do you think Strand is waiting for us?"

Elyza shook her head, "Doubt it mate. Even so the storm hasn't let up so we aren't about to go check. We should stay here until it passes, then scavenge the neighborhood." 

"And then what?" Travis asked.

Elyza just shrugged and ran her fingers through her hair. "There is no plan. We just wing it, survive day to day until this thing ends. If it ends." 

Alicia sighed next to her and reached out for her hand. "Life should be about more than just surviving." She laced their fingers together, her eyes wide and sad. Elyza smiled at her, drowning yet again in dark green galaxies. The conversation around them was drowned out, the two were in their own world as the family bickered over senseless things. Elyza leaned in to kiss Alicia's cheek, making the girl blush. They hadn't noticed the room grow quiet until Madison cleared her throat, launching both girls back into reality. Elyza quickly put space between herself and Alicia, trying to hide her own flushed cheeks. She cleared her throat and straightened up, moving back away from the table, "Hmm yeah anyway I uh...I need to uh...go make sure the Uhm..." She didn't even bother to finish her excuse as she retreated quickly to the living room.

\----------

The rain was beginning to slow, but the clouds still hung thick and heavy as far as she could see. Elyza leaned her forehead into the window, watching small rivers flow through the street, washing away what was left of their old life. She sat there for a while before she saw it. She jerked back, then leaned forward again in surprise, crying out when she accidentally hit her face too hard on the window. Alicia rushed over and grabbed her shoulder. 

"What's wrong are you okay?!" Her eyes were frantic with fear at Elyza's shout of pain. 

"No no I'm fine I just thought...I don't know I thought I saw car lights. Hit my damn head on the window." She rubbed her forehead as she squinted out the window, searching through the rain for the lights. When she couldn't find them again she shook her head, "Must be the rain playing tricks." She wasn't sure what she had seen, but she reached down for her holster, ensuring the .45 was resting there. If it had been a car, they could be in serious danger, she knew. People were worse than the dead in this new world. 

Alicia visibly relaxed, sitting next to Elyza at the window. She sighed and lay her head on the blondes shoulder wringing her fingers in thought. Elyza looked down at her, and kissed the top of her head as she wrapped her arms around her shoulders. "Penny for your thoughts?"

"I was just thinking about a future. Do you think this will ever end? Do you think maybe some day we can live in a home and not have to worry about dead people trying to eat us and living people trying to steal from us?" 

"Awh babe you want us to get a house?"

Alicia shoved her shoulder into her ribs in irritation, "Elyza I'm serious. It's been months. I'm tired." 

"I know I know. I'm sorry. I dont know when this will end. I'm sure it will though, even if it means you and I are the last people on the planet." She ran her fingers through the thick brown locks, scratching the girls scalp softly. "I'll find us a safe place. Maybe we can find a farm, grow our own food."

Alicia snuggled in further to Elyza's chest. "Hmm I like that idea. I'm gonna hold you to it." She tipped her head back to kiss the blondes lips, both sighing contentedly. 

"I can't figure out if I have the worst timing ever, or if there's just never a good time to be in a room with you two." Nick was smiling in the door way, his arms crossed over his chest. 

Elyza barked out a laugh, "You have some of the worst timing I've ever seen mate. But any time you'd like to go away, it wouldn't be soon enough." She joked.

Alicia let out a soft laugh, and dropped her head back into Elyza's chest. "Fuck the boat. Let's find a farm."

"A farm it is then. Your wish is my command princess."

\------------------

The rain was beginning to fade that night, clouds wispy and blowing apart. The group had settled around a monopoly board that Madison had found while looking for more blankets. They played for hours, actually getting through an entire game. Elyza had taunted everyone, and ended up losing in debt to Alicia for thousands. The blonde was a terribly sore loser, and Alicia loved to gloat. When everyone had retreated to the rooms for bed, Nick and Chris crashed out on the small couch together, Alicia slipped in one last boast, "I own you now you know. You're in great debt Elyza." 

The blonde had had enough taunting and turned to the girl. Before she could register what was happening Elyza had her lifted up from her ass, legs wrapped around her back. "I'll gladly pay my debts now sassmaster."

Alicia giggled as Elyza walked them back into the small study down the hall, "I don't know, you really owe me so much. How are you ever going to repay me?" The last bit of her sentence came out harsh as Elyza roughly dropped her onto the desk in the middle of the room. Alicia pushed the paperweights and loose pages and pens off the desk making room for herself to lean back. Elyza pushed the girl's shirt up and began to trail hard biting kisses from her hips to her ribs. The brunette arched into the older girl with a soft groan, her hands wrapping around the white tshirt, pulling her as close as she could. The loose blue shirt was steadily rising with Elyza's mouth, until Alicia grew impatient and pulled it off her own head. She sat up, pushing Elyza back upright, and grabbed the bottom of her tshirt. As she was in the process of pulling the fabric over blonde hair, the door to the study slammed open.

"Oi! What in the actual fuck!" Elyza yelled as she jumped in front of Alicia, one hand already on her knife, the other pulling her shirt back down. Travis stood wide eyed in shock at the display, but he shook his head breaking out of his stunned state. He averted his eyes to the floor, "Put your clothes on. We need Elyza out here. Now."

Elyza handed Alicia her shirt back, helping her pull it back over her head. She turned back to Travis, "What do you need me for? What's going on?"

Travis looked back to them, and for the first time they noticed the fear there. "People. There are people outside."


	14. Old Friends

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "People. There are people outside." There was true fear in Travis' eyes, and Elyza had to wonder if it partly came from relying so heavily on her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Due to some confusion, I just wanted to add to these notes to clarify that the mentioned kidnapping in this chapter was supposed to have happened in the two weeks between the beginning of the apocalypse and the mall scene where Elyza meets Alycia. I know it's vague, and I apologize for that. Thank you to the readers who called me out, you only make me better!
> 
>  
> 
> Hey guys! I know it's been a ridiculously long time since I've updated, but I'm getting there. I'm moving to another country soon, so I'm going to try and crank this bad boy out before things get too hectic. I'm a firm believer in quality over quantity, however, so please forgive me if it takes a while. I do have a plan for this though, and we're almost there!

"People. There are people outside." There was true fear in Travis' eyes, and Elyza had to wonder if it partly came from relying so heavily on her. She nodded slightly, and adjusted herself before looking back to Alicia. She gave Elyza a quick nod of consent, and hopped off the desk to follow. 

Elyza reached down to her leg holsters, softly tapping the metal to ensure they were there. She grabbed her shotgun off of the kitchen table and rounded the doorway into the living room. The group was gathered there, watching four strangers loiter outside. 

"Do they know we're here?" Elyza asked anyone in general. 

Nick shook his head, "If they do, they haven't shown it. They're looting the house across the street." 

As the words were coming from Nicks mouth, a tall bald man exited the car that was sitting in front of the small house. He was thin, but his body was covered in armor. A long black coat unfurled onto the asphalt, wrapping around his slight frame. Knives were tucked in to every holster on his legs, and several guns could be made out as well. He strode toward the drive way of the house they hid in, eyeing Elyza's motorcycle resting under the awning. As he grew closer, Elyza stiffened, little hairs on the back of her neck stood to attention, her fists balled up until her nails dug painfully. She sucked in air through her teeth, hissing on the inhale and growling on the exhale.

Alicia touched her forearm, "Are you okay? Who is that?" She looked up from her seated position as Elyza stood over her, watching the blonde's jaw clench and unclench. 

Elyza shook her head and gritted out, "That is someone who should not be here." She stepped away from the window and began to pace, murmuring to herself, and further worrying everyone in the room. "I watched him burn. How is he here?" She growled again, a long frustrated sound as she paced back and forth. Alicia stood, and grabbed Elyza's shoulders, forcing her to stop moving. She didn't say anything for a minute, only looked into troubled blue eyes, allowing her to calm herself. 

"Elyza. Who is that man?" She held her shoulders, still not allowing the blonde to move, forcing her to explain.

Elyza closed her eyes and sighed, but leaned in to Alicia's hands, trying to calm herself. "That is someone I thought I had taken care of. He calls himself Titan. Before I found you I ran in to one of his raiding parties and they kidnapped me. Well they tried to, but you know I'm..."

"Elyza Lex, yes we know." Alicia finished her sentence with a smile. She knew the bravado was for show, mostly for herself to regain confidence. 

"Yeah, damn right love. So anyway, these wankers tried to kidnap me. Tied me up and threw me in the back of a van with four other girls. They took me back to their camp, but I escaped. I tried to save the girls but they had already sold them."

"Sold them?!" Madison stepped in, a mix of fear and fury rolling out of her. 

"Yeah Momma Clark. Sold them. Like they were animals. So I saw fit to blow them all to high hell. I rigged one of their vans with my own special cocktail and blew the bitch up. Their other cars caught, and I watched them all burn. But here he is. The king of the raiders, nasty son of a bitch himself." 

Alicia moved her hand from Elyza's shoulder to the side of her neck, but as she opened her mouth to speak, there was a shout from the man outside.

"Elyza Lex!", he yelled, standing in the drive way. "My favorite Australian bitch! I know you're here, so let's come on out the easy way, before things get messy." 

Alicia stiffened at the sound of Elyza being called a bitch, and moved for the door, pulling a gun from Elyza's holster. The blonde quickly grabbed her arm and pulled her back. "No babe. It's a trap. He isn't stupid enough to call me out without a plan. Don't play in to his shit, okay love?" She rubbed her thumb over Alicia's cheek, calming the girl the best she could. "I've kicked his ass once before, I can do it again."

Elyza moved toward the window, and pulled it open. She leaned forward so that her head was just outside and in a particularly loud voice she said, "Ah Titty! That is what you call yourself yes? Or was it Tighty Whitey? I'm sorry mate I can't quite recall. Too busy staring at my damn good looking self in the reflection of your bald head!" 

Titan snarled at her, but Elyza only smirked. She leaned down into the window sill, resting her head on her hand and batting her eyelashes girlishly. "You will pay for your indiscretions girl! I will sell you to the lowest bidder so help me! I'll make sure you never see the light of day again!" His body shook with anger and spit flew from his mouth as he shouted at her. "You want the hard way, so be it! Go get her boys!" 

"Oh baby you know just how I like it!" Elyza yelled just before slamming the window shut. She turned to the group staring at her, and took a deep breath. "Okay, so I may have gone a bit overboard. Sorry. We need to fortify one room, and blast them as they come in. He doesn't know that you're all here yet, so if things get too hairy, you need to get out. I'll handle this mess." 

Alicia rolled her eyes and shook her head, knowing damn well she wasn't leaving Elyza's side. The group quickly gathered their weapons and retreated to the master bedroom at the end of the hall. There was only one entrance, but there were three windows they could climb out of if need be. Elyza could hear Titan's men kicking the front door down. She turned to Alicia and took her face in her hands. 

"No matter what happens, you promise me you'll get out. I can't have them taking you. I won't ever forgive myself if they get you. Please promise me."

Alicia shook her head, tears welling in her eyes from Elyza's tone. It was the first time she had seen true fear coming from her. She had resolved long ago to never leave Elyza's side, but arguing with her now was useless, so she nodded and leaned in to press a soft kiss to her lips. The sound of wood cracking and giving way brought their attention to the bedroom door. Alicia, Chris, Ofelia and Travis had their backs pressed against the wall, while Elyza, Nick, Daniel and Madison stood in front, ready for a brawl. 

Boots thumped down the hall kicking in doors as they went, but the sounds suddenly came to a stop before the bedroom door. Elyza could hear her own heart beating, slow and steady, composed and ready to unleash fury upon the poor soul to stumble through that threshold. She crouched slightly, shotgun pressed into her shoulder, the metal cool on her cheek. She was grounded. She was in her element. 

She was not prepared for the excessive use of C4 that shot the door into splinters. She was not ready for the impact of Alicia yanking her to the ground. She did not expect tear gas canisters to roll into the room already smoking, not giving them any time to escape. She felt more than saw Alicia next to her, so she rolled until she was laying over the girl. The gas permeated her senses, burning her throat and eyes, while the concussion made her ears ring and her mind rattle. Alicia was coughing under her, trying to fight the gas but losing by breathing in deeply. Just as Elyza was going to stop her she felt a crack against the back of her head.

Alicia's horror stricken face was the only thing she saw as her eyes rolled back and the darkness settled in.

\------------

_Breathe Elyza. Keep calm. Let's keep calm and feel out the situation._

Elyza's thoughts raced through her mind, slowly calming and she deepened her breathing and began to find her bearing. She was tied to a chair, that much she knew. She could feel a cloth tied around her eyes, but she hadn't mustered the strength to open them yet. She could feel liquid still lazily making its way from her hair, down her neck and into her jacket. 

_Head wounds bleed. I don't feel sick, so that's good. Maybe a minor concussion, but I'm alive. I'm alive. Oh God Alicia! Okay Elyza stay calm. She's here. They won't kill her. No they'll try to sell her._

She shook her head trying to force the worst case thoughts from her mind, but the movement caused a shooting pain behind her eyes making her hiss. 

"Ah, the Commander awakens." A deep rumbling voice echoed around her, but she couldn't pinpoint where the person was. She added the observation to her subconscious, the room was very empty. 

"Commander huh Tighty? That's new. I don't find it fitting though, maybe Commander of Death, more specifically, yours." She spat out, trying to get a rise out of the man. If he reacted, she would be able to figure out where he was. She listened intently, but was met with ear shattering silence.

He chuckled then, allowing the sound to reverberate throughout the room. She heard footsteps as he walked around her. Then sticky, hot breath in her ear, "I found your pet Elyza. She IS stunning is she not?" Elyza began to shake, unable to hold her composure. Titan had Alicia. She could hear his lips pull back into a smile before he continued, walking around in front of her. "She will probably fetch the best price yet. But then, a piece of ass like that is truly priceless, don't you agree?"

"If you so much as look at her the wrong way, I will slit your throat." Elyza growled out. A primal beast had awoken in her, long dormant since she had met Alicia, but now it shook off its slumber, ready for its calling. She could hear Titan scoff, as she slowly tried to open her eyes. The cloth tied over them was red, and she could make out shapes and light in the room. _First mistake_ , she thought. She could make out his silhouette, along with a table and another shadow. 

"Boastful threats coming from the girl who is tied up."

 _Second mistake._ He underestimated her. She spit in his direction, quickly receiving a hard slap across her cheek. She spit again, this time dropping her head to the ground, letting the blood drop onto the floor. "Mmm hope you like cleaning blood from your floor mate." She was pressing him, looking for any information she could get on where she was. Luckily for her, he hadn't caught on.

"Blood washes easily from cement. I could split you open, and my cleaner would erase you in minutes."

It must be a garage. She slowly slid her tied feet across the ground, feeling the cement beneath her boots. It was smooth, probably an autoshop or a small warehouse. While she picked at her bindings behind her back she breathed in, smelling machine grease and sweat. Though the sweat could very well be coming from herself. The space was humid and the air thick. 

She knew she needed to keep up with the conversation if she wanted time to escape her hand bindings without the people in the room noticing. "I have to give it to you mate, the tear gas was a nice touch. A bit drastic, but I have a feeling a fair boy like you has always has a flair for the dramatic eh?" Her snark earned her another hit to the face, this time with a fist instead of an open hand. She barked out a laugh, spitting blood again. 

"There you have it. I'd say you hit like a woman, but that would be an insult to some of the women who've hit me." Another fist crashed into her jaw, and she let her head slump. She began to laugh, though she was truly in pain, she neither cared or reacted to it. The only thing going through her mind was escaping and finding Alicia. She was the only thing that mattered. 

"Well, it's been a real pleasure Elyza. But I have some people to contact, some bodies to sell. I'll be back to finish you off later. For now, I'll leave you to picture all the ways I can play with my new toy." Two sets of footsteps echoed behind her, then the sound of a garage door rolling open and slamming shut. She sat still and silent for a while, making sure there was no one left with her. When she was satisfied and convinced she was alone, she set about freeing her hands. The plastic ties weren't going to break so she had two choices, try to stand and break the chair, or work her way out of the zip ties. 

She tried to stand but found that the chair was bolted to the ground. A small smirk formed on her face, Titan had obviously prepared for her this time. Unfortunately for him, Elyza never played the same game twice.


	15. Your Apocalypse

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> She readied herself, knowing she’d have to take him down or he’d sound the alarm alerting the others that she had escaped. Heavy footsteps lazily approached her, she could tell just from his walk that he was overconfident. He would never expect someone to attack him. As he grew closer, she crouched down, ready to pounce as soon as he passed her.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hellooo everybody! Okay so I just want to put a trigger warning out, this chapter is a little brutal. Not really a little, it's pretty brutal. I hope you guys enjoy it, leave me feedback, love whatever you want! Also, I think we are nearing the end for this story, one maybe two more chapters. I have plans for more stories though so worry not!

Alicia was no damsel in distress, Elyza knew that. The girl would probably fight tooth and nail against her captors, she wouldn’t make it easy. Elyza was counting on Alicia fighting them, taking up time, time she needed to escape. She silently willed the girl to fight as hard as she could, drag her feet and make them work for every inch they would take from her. 

The first hurdle Elyza would need to get over was the zip tie holding her hands. Once she escaped those she could remove the blindfold, and assess the situation of whatever had her bound to the chair. It was heavy across her lap, but it didn’t feel like chain so she assumed it was a thick rope. Whatever it was, was preventing her from moving her hands in front of her to break the ties around her wrists on her hips, so she knew she would need to find another way to snap the plastic. She wracked her brain for escape techniques her father had taught her when she was a child. A glimpse of a memory came to her, Jake’s kind smile, the blonde stubble on his chin, his cologne. Elyza closed her eyes and smiled, letting herself delve deeper into the memory. Her eyes shot open when she saw what she needed to do.

She put all her weight on the balls of her feet, leaning forward as best she could. She stretched her arms back as far as they would go, and brought them down around the top of her back as hard as she could. A hiss escaped her as her knuckles hit the back of the chair, and the plastic held. She took a deep breath, calmed herself and tried again. This time her hands cleared the back of the chair, her wrists came down with a thump around the back of her ribcage, and a small pop came from the zip tie. Her arms dropped to her sides and she smirked. _Cheaper isn’t always better Titan_ , she thought, running her fingers across her blindfold. Once she found the knot she twisted and pulled at it until it fell from her eyes. She took a moment to take in her surroundings.  
It was definitely some kind of workshop. There were old rusted cars on one wall, and various equipment on another. The tools appeared as if they were something one would use on a farm. She looked down to her waist, and found she was correct about the rope around her waist. Untying the thick knots took more time than Elyza was happy with, but once it fell from her waist she was free of the chair. She stood and shook out her legs, taking stock of her injuries. Her bottom lip was split, there were deep bruises on her ribs, _hopefully not broken_ , and her shoulders ached from being pulled behind her. She spit a string of blood onto the slick cement before moving through the large workshop. Her weapons weren’t in the building, but she quickly located a pry bar hanging on a rack, along with a sickle. There was a large scythe leaned up against a workbench that she seriously considered taking for the novelty, but fought her sarcastic nature for practicality. She stuck the pry bar into the holster on her back that usually carried her shotgun, and moved toward a door on the side of the building.

The fact that the door was unlocked proved to her that once again Titan and his goons had underestimated her. Outside was pitch black, clouds covered the moon making it nearly impossible for her to gauge her surroundings. What she could see was a large farmhouse sitting about 400 yards from where she was. There was nothing but darkness and black shadows in between. While the dark helped, it also made it incredibly difficult for her to navigate herself toward the house. She assumed the rest of her group was being held somewhere inside, being that she was the only one in the shop. She hoped that they were all still here, and not sold off like cattle. She knew Titan wouldn’t have Alicia held in the same place as everyone else, he would want her to be taken better care of. There was a possibility that Ofelia would be with Alicia, but the rest of the group would likely be in a less fortunate position.

As loudly as her heart was screaming for her to find Alicia first, her head convinced her to at least try to find Daniel or Nick so she might have some muscle when things went south. There was no if in her mind about it, she knew it would have to be a fight to the death if she had any hope of getting away from Titan. She was nearing a looming black shadow that revealed itself as an old tractor as she got closer. With her hands outstretched she moved behind it, fingers trailing over cool metal and onto hard rubber tires. A slam came from the house, and she peeked around the metal beast to see three men leaving through the front door, each turning on a flashlight and moving in different directions around the house.

The largest of the three headed towards the workshop, towards her. She readied herself, knowing she’d have to take him down or he’d sound the alarm alerting the others that she had escaped. Heavy footsteps lazily approached her, she could tell just from his walk that he was overconfident. He would never expect someone to attack him. As he grew closer, she crouched down, ready to pounce as soon as he passed her. When he got close to the tractor he stopped, and Elyza’s eyes went wide. He pointed his flashlight toward the workshop, and Elyza grimaced and silently cursed herself as she realized that in her haste to find the others she had left the door wide open. His gruff voice came from less than a foot away, speaking into a radio he had pulled form his belt.

“Titan this is Dak.”  
“Go ahead Dak.”  
“Did we leave the warehouse door open when we left? Over.”  
“The warehouse door….NO! Get your ass in there NOW!”  
There was silence on Dak’s end and then, “You didn’t say over boss. Over.”  
“I WILL MURDER YOU IN YOUR SLEEP GET IN THERE AND MAKE SURE SHE IS STILL THERE! OVER!”  
Elyza fought the incredibly strong urge to bark out a laugh as the large man jumped to and began running toward the shop. She quickly chased after him, ensuring her footsteps were light and quiet. When he got to the door he slowed, and as soon as he stepped in Elyza jumped onto his back, the sickle tight across his throat.  
“Well hello mate, why don’t we go ahead and radio in, tell the little boss man I’m still wrapped up nice and tight like the sweet little Christmas present he thinks I am.”  
She could feel the man gulp, and wince from the scrape across his adams apple. He didn’t move for his radio, so she dug the blade in deeper, drawing blood now. “Look, Dak yeah?” She said, still hanging from his back. He nodded. “You can radio in, I’ll knock you out, and you can go on your way when you wake up, or I can slice your throat and the bloodbath can start now. It’s truly up to you mate.” He hesitated, but gulped again and grabbed the radio.  
“Dak to Titan.”  
“Go ahead Dak.” Titan growled out through the crackling of the radio.  
“She’s in ‘er chair, just like you left ‘er. Over.”  
She could hear the man on the other end breathe a sigh of relief, “Okay. Okay good. Stay with her. Don’t speak to her, don’t even move. Just sit there and make sure she doesn’t escape.”  
Another long period passes, Elyza could feel Dak hold his breath, until a growl came from the radio and an exasperated, “Over!” came from Titan. Dak nodded, forgetting the sickle pressed against his skin and yelped when it cut into him again.  
Elyza laughed and shook her head, “Giving yourself some nasty razorburn there man.” She snagged the radio from his hand as she dropped on his back and pushed the sickle’s point into his back. “Now I know I said I’d knock you out, but I’ve seen what you do to people. What kind of person would I be if I let the likes of you continue to wander around?” She closed her eyes and pushed the blade quickly between the back of his ribs, and kicked his knees out shoving him to the ground. She didn’t stay to watch him struggle.

She broke out in a dead run toward the house, Dak’s M9 in her hand. The other two men who exited the house with Dak were nowhere to be seen. She hoped they were further out on the property, lessening the security inside the house. When she reached the wraparound porch she hopped up, and couched down, pressing her back against the wall under a window. Slowly, she turned and peeked in, seeing an empty kitchen. From the window she could see a part of the entry way and the living room, but she didn’t see any bodies there. She quickly moved to another window, right outside the living room. When she slowly looked inside, she made eye contact with someone sitting on the floor and dropped back under, until she realized the eyes belonged to Chris. She rose back up and saw his wide eyes, she lifted her fingers to her lips and his eyes glanced to his left, pointing out a man holding a gun leaning against the entry way wall. She nodded her head to him, and looked to his right, seeing Travis, Nick, Madison and Daniel all zip tied and slumped against the far wall. Her suspicions of Titan keeping Ofelia and Alicia separate were correct.

Elyza made her way to the door. She knew there would be more than one man guarding the group in the living room, but if she could take the one down and snag his gun her odds would rise greatly. Then again, if Titan heard gunshots, there was no telling what he’d do with Alicia and Ofelia. She leaned against the door and sighed.  
Either way, she needed to get inside. The front door seemed like the least likely place for her to come in, so that’s exactly what she did. Slowly she twisted the doorknob, and pushed it until it was just cracked enough for her to peer around the corner. She waited a minute, making sure no one was moving around the house, then slipped inside. To the left of the door was a wall, the same wall the man guarding Chris and the group was leaning up against. She slowly mad her way to the archway leading into the living room, she could see Chris leaned up against a wall to her right. She could see the tips of the boots of the man she was ready do incapacitate, so she leapt around the corner and before anyone knew what was happening the sickle slipped through his throat. His eyes bulged as his hands went to his neck, survival instincts telling him to save the blood. Stop the blood from escaping. He dropped heavily to the floor and Elyza turned to Chris. 

She used the now blood stained sickle to cut the ropes around his wrists and feet. “Where is she?”

He shook his head, not needing a name to know where Elyza’s priorities lay. “She’s upstairs. Titan took her and Ofelia up when we got here.” Elyza handed him the sickle and stood, looking down on the boy.  
“Cut the rest free, get the hell out of here. I’ll grab them and meet you if I can.” Chris nodded his head, taking the blade and moving toward his family. Elyza picked the rifle the man dropped when she cut his throat, wiping the blood on his own jacket. She popped the magazine, checked for ammo, and slipped it back in. She moved toward the stairs, racking the rifle, ensuring there was a bullet in the chamber. _Don’t worry Alicia, I’m coming._ Elyza thought as she made her way up the stairs. At the top of the landing she saw a hallway to her right, all the doors shut. Light was spilling out from underneath the one at the end of the hall. She moved toward it, listening for Titan or his goons, or hopefully, Alicia.  
As she neared the door, she could hear heavily footfalls, pacing the length of the room behind it. She assumed the footsteps belonged to Titan, as she couldn’t imagine Alicia or Ofelia not being tied up. She kicked the door in without a second thought, but was hit in the chest with surprise when she found that the person pacing was, in fact, Alicia. She froze, and the girl turned around, eyes wide when she saw the blonde.  
“Elyza?”  
“Alicia. Let’s go we have to go. Where is Ofelia?”  
Alicia’s eyes widened and she half shook her head in surprise, before she screamed, “Elyza look out!” Just as a boot stuck Elyza square in the back, sending her sprawling into the room.  
She turned to lift the rifle, but the boot was back kicking it from her hand, skittering across the room. Titan pushed his weight into his foot, crushing Elyza’s left had. He leaned down, smiling, “Oh dear, how sweet. You thought you could just slip in here and take my new prized mare from me?” He chucked, Elyza growled. “You can be quite predictable you know, and now I’m going to kill you, and allow your girlfriend here to watch.” He stood upright before thinking again, then leaned over Elyza and spit right in her face. “It’s too bad you’re such a pain in the ass, I know someone who would pay nicely for….” BOOM! 

Elyza’s brow furrowed in confusion, blood and spit spattered across her face. Titan’s body collapsed next to her, twitching as the life left him. She leaned up on her elbows, seeing Alicia in the corner of the room, breathing heavily, the rifle still held up and pressed to her shoulder. When green eyes locked onto blue, she lowered the weapon, and a flash of emotion crossed her face. Elyza watched as confusion, regret, pride and then finally relief passed across her elegant features. She moved to pull herself up off the ground when Alicia stepped forward, dropping the gun and hurtling herself into Elyza. She wrapped her arms around the brunette, letting her tuck her face into her neck.  
“Hey it’s okay. I’ve got you. You’re okay.” Elyza whispered into her hair, rubbing her back. When Alicia let out a small laugh, Elyza pushed her back looking into her face.  
“Saved your life again Lex. If we keep this up, you’re going to owe me.” Elyza laughed and pulled her back in, leaving a kiss atop her head.  
“I do owe you, you will receive your payment later sassmaster. For now, where is Ofelia?”  
Alicia pulled back, a confused look on her face. “She isn’t with the others?”  
Elyza’s blood ran cold, she ran out of the room and kicked down the three other doors in the hallway. All the rooms were empty. Then she remembered the men who left the house, and cursed herself for not realizing where they were headed. She called to Alicia to follow her and took off, bounding down the stairs before turning back to make sure the girl was there. She reached out her hand, not wanting to stray too far from Alicia again, and pulled her outside.  
The two burst through the front door and straight into a person, sending them to the wooden planks of the porch with a loud “UMPH”. Elyza scrambled to the offensive, wrapping her forearm under the persons chin, ready to choke them until she felt Alicia pulling at her, yelling to let him go. She focused on him, the adrenaline fading, and realized it was Nick.  
“Woah sorry mate, fog of war and all that.” She told him as she stood, pulling him up with her. He dusted himself off shaking his head.  
“What happened? Did you get Titan?”

Elyza nodded, glancing back at Alicia, but finding no emotion in her face. “We need to find Ofelia, quickly. I have no idea where Titan could have sent her.”  
Nick shook his head, “No its okay, Chris found her. She was tied up in the back of the van we were going to steal to get out of here. Daniel and mom took the two out who were guarding her. Everyone is okay.”

Elyza let out a breath and allowed herself to drop to the top step of the porch, slumping into the wood bannister. Alicia joined her soon after, and Nick took off to gather the rest of the group. Alicia’s hand slipping in to hers, their fingers entwining. She leaned over resting her head on Elyza’s shoulder, their hands in her lap. The two stayed that way until a dark blue work van rolled up to the house, unloading the Clarks, Minawas and Salazars.  
Madison ran to Alicia, who stood allowing her mother to hug her tightly. Elyza didn’t move, only dropped her head in her hands. She was having a hard time dealing with the amount of fear she had experienced that night. She was never afraid for her own life, but these people had grown to mean more to her than she ever imagined. Not just Alicia, all of them. She loved them like family. It was in the middle of those thoughts that she felt slight arms encircling her shoulders, pulling her in and holding her. Madison held her like a child, and then Elyza let go. She cried. Cried until her eyes stung and her ribs ached. She cried for her own mother, hopefully still alive all the way in Australia. She cried for Matt, she cried for the world’s innocence. 

The group had moved inside when Elyza broke down, leaving them alone on the stairs. She was only vaguely aware of what was happening when she was made to stand, guided up the stairs of the house and into one of the bedrooms in the hall. She was placed in the bed, and she felt soft hands remove her boots, then her pants, her bloody white shirt, and her much loved leather jacket. It wasn’t until she was enveloped in the smell of coconut and sugar that she realized Alicia must have crawled in to bed with her. For the first time in weeks, Elyza allowed herself to relax.

Just before she fell asleep Alicia whispered in her ear, "Do you know what the true literal meaning of apocalypse is?"

Elyza shook her head no, her nose bushing across the girls sternum. She felt Alicia's voice with her cheek pressed against her chest and smiled when she heard her whisper, "It means, a lifting of the veil, or a revelation. You never have to hide from me Elyza. I love your apocalypse."


	16. I Am A Nightmare, You Are A Miracle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> “Karma is a very strange bitch isn’t she Commander? Or wait whoops sorry, Commando?” She rolled onto the bed laughing as Alicia glared at her from the doorway, her lips slightly quirking up at the corners.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay guys, this is it for this one. A sequel is possible, but I can't make any promises. Leave me comments, kudos, whatever you want! I started a new fic too, let me know if you guys dig it. Thanks for staying with me for this ride!! Title is from I Am a Nightmare by Brand New

Elyza woke from sleep slowly, she wasn’t sure what it was that roused her. She cracked her eyes open only to realize it was still dark out. The moon was full, streaming into the window like a pale sun, washing everything in silver. For a minute, she was able to forget where she was. She half expected to rise from the bed and see her own room in Melbourne, hear her mother moving about the house after a late night shift, hear her father’s low voice happily welcome her home. 

She sighed, and put her right hand over her face. She stretched her left arm out, her hand brushing across still warm sheets where Alicia should have been. It was only that moment, and the thought of the girl that rushed Elyza back into reality. She leaned up onto her elbow, eyes wide in the dark, trying to figure out where she had gone. When she realized the room was empty, Elyza rolled out of bed, slipped into her jeans and the maroon sweater Alicia had taken off before she crawled into bed with her. She shook her blonde hair out of the high neck, and breathed in the sweet smell of the girl she was mad for. 

The bedroom door creaked loudly when she pushed it open, making her grimace, and feel a bit like a teenager trying to sneak out. She smiled again and shook her head at the thought, and quietly moved through the hall, softly padding down the stairs. There was a light on in the kitchen, so she was surprised to find no one there. There was a kettle on the stove, steam was coming out of its spout but the flame was off. She looked out the window above the sink and saw what she was looking for. Alicia stood with a mug cupped in her hands, leaning over the porch bannister, silently looking out into the fading darkness.

As quietly as she could, she opened the screen door, slowly making her way towards Alicia. She slipped her arms around the girl’s waist from her back, earning a small jump, but then a content hum of approval. Elyza rested her head on Alicia’s shoulder, and Alicia leaned her head over to let it rest on Elyza’s. Elyza could tell the sun was going to rise soon, the darkness was loosening its grip on the sky, and small animals were beginning to move about. Neither girl said anything for a while, just stood like that, watching the dead world come back to life. 

Alicia was the first to break the silence, only after her cup of tea was drained and the sun was on the verge of peaking over the horizon. “We can’t stay here, can we?”

Elyza breathed in deeply, kissed Alicia’s jaw and shook her head. “No princess. Not for long. Nowhere is safe for long. But for now, we can try not to worry about tomorrow.”

Alicia sighed, and turned into Elyza, leaving her cup on the bannister and wrapping her arms around her. “That’s okay. I’m not worried.” The words left her and Elyza thought that this girl was stronger and more prepared for a life like this that anyone she had ever met. She would follow her to the ends of the earth, and then back. She would follow her to space if that’s where the girl wanted to go. The thought made her laugh, and Alicia pulled back giving her a look like she knew the next words from Elyza’s mouth would be the most ridiculous thing she’d ever heard. They were.

“Bisexual space princess and the lesbian grounder warrior.” Elyza laughed as she was saying it, earning a soft eye roll and head shake from Alicia.

“I don’t even want to know Elyza. I don’t even want to know.” Alicia said as she turned and picked up her cup and headed inside, a hysterical blonde Australian in tow. 

Elyza frowned as they went inside, and followed Alicia back into the kitchen. “You left before the sunrise.”

Alicia shrugged, “I wasn’t there to see the sun rise. I like the moments just before, when everything is still.” She set the cup down on the kitchen counter and grabbed Elyza’s hand, pulling her upstairs. Elyza couldn’t believe this girl was real. Before she knew what she was doing she stopped at the top of the stairs, making Alicia turn around.

“I love you.” Elyza’s own eyes grew wide when the words slipped from her lips. Alicia only smiled, taking her hand and walking toward their bedroom again.

“I know.” She said, smiling, pulling Elyza through the doorway and pushing the door shut. “I love you too.”

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Their moment of peace was broken a few hours later when the sun was burning high, leaking through the curtains on the windows and baking them in their sheets. Nick knocked, and popped the door open, in usual Nick fashion. He smirked when neither Elyza nor Alicia moved from the bed, both unsurprised by his constant intrusions at this point.  
Alicia bristled, reminding Elyza of when they first met. She spoke with her lip curled over her front teeth, looking so much more menacing than the soft thing she was only moments before. “Seriously Nick. What do you want?”  
“There are walkers all over the property. So when you two are finished…ahem…doing whatever you’re doing, it’d be great if you could help board the house up.” He laughed again, and left the room, with the door open because he knew it would infuriate Alicia. Elyza tried her best not to laugh when the girl threw her hands up and flopped back onto the pillows. 

“He left the door open.” She grumbled, crossing her arms over her chest.

Elyza couldn’t contain her laughter at that point. “He did. I’m actually quite interested to see how you’re going to go about getting it shut with your clothes on the other side of the room.”

Alicia slowly turned to face her, nostrils flared and eyes squinted in irritation. Suddenly her expression changed into a mischievous grin. Elyza frowned, half in confusion, half in worry. That look was never an omen of good things to come for her. The worry wasn’t misplaced, because seconds later Alicia was rolling out of bed with the sheets wrapped around her, leaving Elyza exposed and naked on the bed. 

“Alicia!” Elyza yelped, grabbing a pillow to try to cover herself. The brunette laughed and scurried over to the door, sheets dragging on the floor behind her. She went to shut the door and thought better of it, instead collecting her own clothes and leaving the room to change in the bathroom. As soon as she left the room, Elyza could her Travis saying something in the hall. Her eyes bulged out and she screamed as she jumped out of the bed, sprinted to the door and slammed it shut just as Travis rounded the corner. 

“Elyza? Is everything okay?” He asked through the door. She could hear Alicia’s laughter from the bathroom, and let her head drop against the wood.

“Yeah, yeah mate everything is fine. I uh, um, just need a few minutes.” She heard him mumble something about teenagers, and could hear his heavy footsteps retreat down stairs. Once she knew he was safely away from the door, she hurried around the room, throwing her clothes on as she found them. She barked out a laugh when she saw Alicia’s underwear under the bed, and picked them up, putting them in her back back. _Someone’s going commando today._ The thought alone was enough revenge for her, but when Alicia opened the door looking incredibly bashful, she felt even better. 

“Karma is a very strange bitch isn’t she Commander? Or wait whoops sorry, Commando?” She rolled onto the bed laughing as Alicia glared at her from the doorway, her lips slightly quirking up at the corners. 

“Where are they Elyza?”

“Oh no babe, you’re not getting them back today. There is an abundance of granny panties in the dresser though.”

“Elyza! My mom took the rest of our clothes to the river to wash them!” She spoke through gritted teeth, but Elyza could see the blush creeping up her neck, and could hear her struggling not to laugh. The blonde shook her head smiling, and moved toward the door.

“Sorry doll, I have walkers to kill, fences to build. I’m a busy woman. No time to find your panties.” She winked and made to slip past Alicia into the hallway, but she grabbed her wrist and pulled her into a kiss. 

Elyza’s jaw dropped when Alicia winked, and leaned into whisper in her ear, “Go ahead and keep them then.” She slapped Elyza’s ass and sauntered down the stairs, leaving the blonde shocked yet again, open mouthed at the top of the stairs. Ofelia came out of one of the rooms in the hall laughing, and pushed past Elyza shaking her head. Elyza dumbly followed her down the stairs, only being shaken from her trance when Daniel held out her gun belt for her.

She strapped on the holsters, slipped the shotgun onto her back and pushed one .45 into the right leg holster. Alicia was watching her from the kitchen table, with a devilish grin on her face. Elyza pretended to not notice, twirling her other handgun around like some kind of lesbian cowboy. She laughed at the thought, opened the door mumbling and shaking her head. “Aussie lesbian cowboy and the commando bisexual outlaw.”

 

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Nick wasn’t exaggerating, the property was surrounded by walkers. The commotion from last night must have brought them to the fences. Luckily for the group, the fence held up, and was keeping the walkers from getting to close to the house. Elyza knew they would have to get rid of all of them if they even wanted to stay here another night. She also knew that they wouldn’t be able to stay here for very long. They had to keep moving, always moving.  
She pulled her machete out from its strap on her thigh and headed for the fence, ready to get to work. Before she could dispatch even one zombie, she saw movement to her left. She half laughed when she saw Alicia, literally swinging for the fences with a bat riddled with sharp nails. Madison sidled up next to her with a metal pipe, then Travis, and soon the whole group was out on the fence line, working like a well-oiled machine. Elyza was proud to be a part of this group, a part of this new family. 

It took them all day, and even when the sun had begun to set there were still stray walkers milling about the other side of the fence. The group had only stopped once to eat after Daniel brought back three rabbits from his hunt. Elyza still wasn’t sure where or how he had found them, but it didn’t matter as soon as she was digging in to soft smoked rabbit. It was probably the best thing the group had eaten in quite some time, so they took their time enjoying it. After their meal, they got back to work. The group had split into two, one set of them killing the walkers, the other going in behind them and gathering the bodies to set them afire. 

When the sun dipped below the foothills in the distance, the group moved to each fire and snuffed them out. Elyza told them that the light would beckon to other walkers, so they would need to be put out. 

Elyza flopped into a chair in the kitchen, covered in dirt, blood, sweat and ash. Alicia didn’t even bother with a chair and lay herself on the cool tile. Nick had come in before the rest of the group to prepare the rest of the rabbit for dinner. Madison set her hand softly on Elyza’s shoulder and told her to go shower. The house they had taken from Titan was situated on a well, so they knew they would have enough water for months. The land would become too dangerous to live on before they ran out of water. So Elyza dragged herself out of the chair, nudging Alicia on her way out of the kitchen. 

After their shower they fell into bed, too exhausted to worry about anything but sleep.

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Elyza would have sworn up and down that she had only been asleep for a split second before their bedroom door was being kicked in and frantic voices were urging them out of bed. Her immediate reaction was to reach for Alicia, who thankfully was right behind her, and they were both fully clothed. Madison was yelling about “a fire and get up and grab what you can and let’s go!”, but Elyza’s ears felt like they were filled with cotton. Alicia grabbed her and shook her hard, breaking her out of her trance. Elyza finally shook her head and took off behind Alicia, allowing herself to be pulled down the stairs and hurtled out onto the porch. 

Elyza didn’t ask questions when Travis pulled up in a truck, calling them to jump in. Ofelia, Nick, Chris, Madison and Daniel were already settled in, so she threw herself into the bed of the truck behind Alicia, and she finally looked back at the house. It was being swallowed up in flames, walkers were hoarding the area, some of them burning as they walked. Alicia shoved Elyza’s back pack into her lap, and Elyza smiled. She didn’t ask how Alicia had even had the forethought to grab her stuff, as well as her own. For the millionth time since meeting her, Elyza couldn’t believe that this girl was real. This girl was real, and she was hers.

Alicia turned to the open back window of the truck and leaned in to ask Madison what had happened.

“We’re not sure. Luckily Nick was awake, because he saw the fire catch the porch.” Madison informed her.

Daniel piped up then, “One of the dead must have brought the fire to the house after breaking through the fence.”

Elyza was upset, they had worked so hard to fix the fence and dispatch the walkers. They had worked carefully to put out their fires. But careful wasn’t enough. She sighed and leaned against the window of the truck, watching the burning house grow smaller in the distance. She took Alicia’s hand in hers, and they both looked out into the night. Alicia leaned into Elyza, resting her head on her shoulder.

Elyza knew there were no happy endings during a zombie apocalypse. There was no sanctuary. There would be no safe haven that they could hide in until it was all over. She wasn’t even sure if it would ever end. But today she was alive, and Alicia was here with her. That was a happy enough ending for her.


End file.
